Double the Nudge!
by ICouldBeNudge
Summary: The Flock is on the street again, stopping for a while in Austin, Texas. Until they find a mysterious note... Meet a new member of the flock, a new enemy, and plot worse than taking over the world. Rated T for usual Max Ride violence, no language...
1. Here we go again

A.N. Hey everyone! This is my very first fanfic, so excuse me as I learn to use this thing! My first story takes place after FANG, but Fang is still in the flock. After Dylan gave himself a weird shot, he disappeared, and the flock hasn't seen him since.

Nudge: Hi!

Me: Hey Nudge! What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Max and the others?

Nudge: Nope! See, in FanFiction world, I can stay here and talk to you! –She looks at my writing- Oh cool! What does she like? Is she like me? Oooo… Max is going to like that part—

Me (covering her mouth): Nudge, don't ruin it! Man, you're just like the books say you are. I'll let you keep me company, maybe even give me a few ideas, but you can't tell the readers! Okay?

Nudge: Okay. Start writing already!

Me (sighing): Okay. Welcome everyone to the adventure! Nudge! Don't click submit yet! I haven't started writing… This is going to be interesting…

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of James Patterson's Maximum Ride. Though Nudge really wishes I did! 

**CHAPTER 1: Here we go again**

Max POV

We hate the CSM. The Flock and I have decided that enough is ENOUGH! I mean, the whole business with Jeb and Dylan, and my mom's kidnapping, and Fang almost dying… I figure that we can get along fine on our own. Though we will miss the free doughnuts…

Right now, the Flock decided to take a grand tour of America. You know. Without the Erasers and M-Geeks and Flyboys and robots on our tails, trying to take us down with machine guns and grenades, trying to capture us, or kill us, or sell us to crazy organizations as weapons. Yeah, we were trying to enjoy the land of the free as free beings.

We were crossing over the row of states down the middle, you know, with Nebraska and Kansas and Oklahoma. I don't know what name to call this place, I never took Geography. But let me just say that the land was... BORING! Cornfields and plains and cows. Nothing exciting. Not like New York. Man, I love that place!

"Max…" Oh. No. Not again. I groaned and looked over at Nudge, dreading what she was about to say. "Max, this place is boring. When are we going to reach civilization? I want to go to the movies or something. I'm kind of hungry, too, and I don't want to eat corn. Speaking of corn, did you notice how that last field we crossed was greener than this one? The river seems kind of dried up here, ya know? And what's with cows? Why can't they be the same color? Did you notice that our wings are completely different colors? I mean, Iggy's and Angel's are pretty close, but if you look closely you can see lots of differences. Uh… I have to go to the bathroom. Where's the nearest-" she stopped when Gazzy clamped his hand over her mouth.

Thank goodness. I was actually starting to get a migraine from her chatter.

Nudge POV

I tried to hold it in, but the first word slipped out, "Max…" she looked at me, and I knew I had to say it. I can't say "Never mind" for some reason. So everything came out, and I just felt helpless as I described every thought in my head for the last hour. I hate moments like this. There really is something wrong with me. I gabbed and gabbed until the Gasman covered my mouth. "Sorry." I mumbled, and Max looked relieved that I finally stopped talking.

I don't really want to talk. It's just that I can't keep anything in my head for long. It started back at the School, when I was around three or four. A whitecoat took me to a small white room, standard for the facility, and strapped me down to a table. He explained, "This experiment will determine if your vocal capabilities are directly connected to your avian DNA." He picked up an enormous, dangerous-looking tool. "This is a fluid that will mix your DNA with a touch of canary's." It was strapped around my wrist, and a needle was inserted through the skin. I winced, and then the world caught on fire. Every color changed in meaning to me, the yellows seemed too bright, the blacks too threatening, and the whites too... clean. I struggled against the restraints, shutting my eyes from this horrible change in sight, and suddenly, my vocal chords shivered. My mouth opened, and every thought in my head came out for the entire world to hear. I was horrified, unable to control my speech. Finally, my voice trailed away, and the whitecoat made some notes on a computer. I was breathing hard, flushed with fear and exhaustion. Back in my cage with Max and the others, I fell against the bars, slumping to my side. I could hear Max asking what was wrong, and Angel tried to pry into my mind (she hadn't developed all of her abilities as a mind-reader yet). I just lay there, my brain blank, trying to keep any thoughts from getting in. I had to be careful, or I could start blabbing in a dangerous situation...

Snapping out of my memory, I sighed and dropped to the back of the Flock, so I could stop chattering in their ears. I saw Angel join me. Angel was the only one who knew the problem I had. "It's not your fault, you know," she comforted me.

"It's totally my fault," I whispered back. How could it not? I wasn't like Iggy; I could stop talking, and he couldn't stop being blind. And yet, I blow everything by my outbursts.

"No, Nudge. Everyone actually enjoys hearing you talk. It's what makes you unique." I sigh and smile at my friend. She was creepy, and over-ambitious, and often disloyal to Max, but she was still my good friend.

After what seemed like hours, we FINALLY crossed into Texas, and an hour or two later, we touched down in Austin, Live Music Capital of the World. I looked around as we folded our wings into our backs in some forest by one of the many lakes. Some girls my age were rowing canoes on the water, laughing and splashing and having fun. And, they had no wings. I SO envied them.

Iggy POV

I followed the sound of the Flock's wings as they fluttered for landing, and copied them. Being blind meant that every other sense was intensified, almost super-human. Or should I say, super-mutant. But it still meant that you couldn't see, and I would never get over that.

Fang told me that we were going to Austin, and let me say, these people were weird. Not as weird as New-Yorkers, but weirder than most. Gazzy read on a bumper sticker, "Keep Austin Weird." Well, they were doing a really good job at it, no offense to you Austinites out there.

We walked down some streets, looking around and listening at the sounds and music of the local bands. I followed the sound of Fang's steps as I got my bearings in this strange city.

I thought back to yet another one of Nudge's outbursts. I know she doesn't mean to, but she is a pain really often. For a blind kid, hearing is the most important sense, and once Nudge starts going, I feel deaf almost. So I hope she'll EVENTUALLY grow out of it.

I listened hard to pick up every murmur and scratch to create an environment that I could recognize as we sat on some benches in the park. I picked up a couple of birds in the trees above us, having some conversation, and a squirrel was searching desperately for some nuts nearby. Then I heard it.

The faint, yet audible (at least to me) squeal of tires turning on a street. It was the right sound for a large van, because I could feel the rumble of the ground as it came zooming in. "Van's coming this way," I told them and stood, looking in the direction of the speeding vehicle. It came closer, but... it turned down a side street in the other direction of the Flock. "What did it look like?" I asked Max.

"It was just a white van. It... had no license plate, blacked-out windows... We have to go after it!"

I could tell from the silence that the Flock was just staring at Max in shock. "Max, we're not running from ITEX anymore, so we don't have to go after every suspicious clue." Nudge said.

"The Voice says so. Come on!" she contradicted and launched herself into the sky. The rest of us followed. As we swooped in closer to the road, I could hear the squeals and rumbles of the racing van. We came within ten feet of it as we flapped above, and I heard a crack of broken glass. Fang must have flown in and broken the sunroof.

The van screeched as the driver lost control, and crashed into a telephone pole on the side of the road. The collision rammed into my head, and I flew straight up to gain my understanding of where gravity was. Below, I heard the groaning of metal as it was torn away from the frame of the van.

Nudge POV

Fang smashed the van's sunroof and the driver inside looked up shocked as glass rained into the seats. He swerved off the road and smashed into a telephone pole, wheels turning to a stop. I gasped as we landed nearby. I wondered if he died... then a hand reached out through a window and peeled the shriveled metal door away from the wrecked van. The hand didn't look human though, it looked stony-hard and strong, like a Greek statue. The door flew off and the driver stepped out.

Angel screamed as he silently glared down at us. He had to be several inches taller than Iggy, which meant over six and a half feet. His muscles were bigger than Angel's head, and he wore a suit of solid black. It was a stone giant, and it was mad at us. He ran at us with such speed that we barely had time to dive out of his way.

Max threw Angel and Gazzy into the air, telling them to get away. Fang picked up a part of the telephone pole that lay in several pieces near the crash site, and he whacked the giant hard in the side. But the pole broke into millions of splinters. Oh, my gosh. This guy was invincible! He really must have been made of rock, because when Iggy tried to punch him, he got bloody knuckles and the giant stayed standing, unharmed.

I thought back to my brief time at the school where we went to back in Virginia and tried to remember something from science class. Yes! The giant was made of a certain kind of rock, but the rock had some metal in it. And I am good with metal. I flew straight up and yelled for everyone to follow me. I flapped in close to his head and wrapped my hands around his solid face, grimacing as I felt his stone features. I used my magnetism powers and flew up. And the giant flew with me. Man, this thing must have really weighed a ton, because I could only get a few inches in the air before I was wiped. But then Max grabbed me and yanked us up. She got my plan, and the rest of the Flock soon helped me get him a hundred or so feet in the air. Finally, I released him, and he plummeted, accelerating because of how heavy he was.

I couldn't watch. He cracked into thousands of pieces. We all hovered there in the air above the wreckage and Max whispered, "Good job, Nudge."

Max POV

We landed in the gravel from the stone-guy and looked around. I was disgusted. That dude was creepy. I wonder what evil group of megalomaniacs thought him up. The Gasman yelled, "Hey look at this!" We crowded around what he was pointing to.

"What is it?" Iggy asked. I picked up this black metal shoebox-sized cube and shook it.

"It's some kind of box." I couldn't find any handles or locks.

"Let me see," Nudge said, and took the strange object. She yelped and dropped it.

"What's wrong?" I asked anxiously.

"It's... it's ITEX." She shut her eyes and rubbed her reddening hands sorely. Lifting that stone man must have really strained her hands.

"ITEX? But we took them down!" Fang mumbled.

"ITEX made this thing. I can open it, I guess..." Nudge gingerly held the box again and ran her hands over its surface. Then she pulled up a hidden handle using her magnetic ability and opened it. Inside, a tangle of wires and green boards were arranged. "This must be what made the stone guy work!" She dug her hand into the wires carefully and felt around. Then she yanked out a smaller container. This one was easily opened by me, and small letter was inside.

I opened it up to the first page and read aloud:

_If you are reading this, then you have successfully destroyed the GH 39- Granite Humanoid Number 39-. My congratulations to you. But this is only the tip of the iceberg. Maximum Ride, everyone on earth knows about your quest to save the world, and I must admit, you have done a sterling job so far. But you are nowhere near done with your job, nor will you ever be unless you follow my rules._

_At the address enclosed, a new series of experiments is taking place, and some will be of some interest to you and the Flock. If you are the resourceful being I know you are, you will take this offer of information and give us something we need._

_I look forward to meeting you, Maximum._

_Dr. C. L. Polymer_  
_Head of Discovery and Research, ITEX_

"Well, here we go again," I said.

_You've got that right, Max_, the Voice agreed.

A.N. Hey everyone! So this is just the beginning of the greatest story ever on FanFiction! (Well, maybe not, but it's the first one I've ever written!) I think the saying is-

Nudge: R&R! Please! If you don't, I'll have to go back to the Flock, and I don't want to leave ICBN! She feeds me chocolate chip cookies! PLEASE R&R!

Me: I couldn't have said it better myself, Nudge.


	2. Why me?

A.N. Hi! Welcome to the second part of Double the Nudge! (If you don't understand the title, you're not alone! Just wait a chapter or two!)

Nudge: Hi! I like hanging out with ICBN! She has an awesome bedroom and lets me play the Wii when she's not using it! I am currently the champ at Wii Sports! 

Me: Are not! You just started pouting when I was winning, so I decided to let you win! 

Nudge: Did not! 

Me: Did too! 

Nudge: Did not! 

Me: Did too! Wait, let's let them start reading the story before we continue arguing, shall we? 

Nudge: Fine. 

**CHAPTER 2: Why me?**

Miranda POV (A.N. This is a few months before the Flock was here, taking down the GH39. Miranda is my first OC, so I hope you like her!)

We rowed our boat over Lake Buchannan, enjoying the warm springtime of central Texas! There are only two weeks in the year when the Austin weather is this comfortable and mild. Otherwise, it's blaring hot, icy cold, soakingly moist, or bone dry (or a combination). So Jennifer, Lindsey and I were taking advantage of it by boating on the water.

After we pulled into the docks, I waved goodbye to my friends and biked home. As I raced down the street, I thought about my life and how I'd changed in the past year. I have a naturally tentative nature, and used to only talk to my closest friends and family. And my stuffed cat Cocoa. So when I went to middle school, my parents and teachers made sure that I opened up by sticking me in the classes with the talkative people. That's where I met my Jennifer and Lindsey. We were "friends", but the truth is that we only hung out because our parents made us. We didn't hate each other, but we were too polite to each other to qualify as anything more than companions.

I rolled my bike into the garage at my home and walked into the house. "Is anyone home?" I yelled, but no one answered. Yes! I walked over to the pantry to grab some chips and flopped on the couch to catch up on some episodes of a TV show I like (A.N. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to mention TV shows, but hopefully you can guess from this clue: Nudge is such a gleek!). As I laughed and watched TV, a shadow fell across my lap.

I looked up to find a masked figure standing over me. He grabbed my mouth so I couldn't scream and lifted my up from the sofa by my neck. I struggled, trying to break through my constricted throat, but this guy was really strong. I kicked him where it counts, but he didn't feel it. Another guy come out from behind a wall, holding a syringe filled with something that couldn't be good. I grabbed at the strong, calloused hands that chocked me, scratching them and yanking. I was starting to get tunnel vision... The needle was stuck into my arm, and all went black.

Nudge POV (A.N. Remember, this is a few months after Miranda's encounter. So think about the time relationship between the Flock and Miranda. If it's confusing, don't worry. The two time periods will meet in the next chapter.)

I was rambling again, when suddenly my voice choked short of blurting out what I wanted for breakfast. We were in a motel in Austin, and Max was trying to get to sleep, but I couldn't stop talking. As usual.

But this time, I felt like something horrible was going on in the world. Not horrible like, zombies crawling out of the sewers of New York, but like Holocaust horrible. I ran out of bed and into the bathroom and collapsed by the toilet, feeling ready to puke. Images flew through my mind, and I felt hot tears roll down my cheeks. My brain pounded in a massive headache, and I vaguely thought of Max and the Voice moving in. I really hoped I wasn't getting a Voice...

Max opened the door to find me curled up on the floor, passed out, she told me. I didn't wake up until late the next morning. Everyone was really worried about me, but I couldn't stop the images flash before my eyes. Images of blueprint drawings and computers and diagrams and children screaming in the background. It was so much like the School, except something was different. I saw myself crying in a cell, my wings spread out limply behind me as I sobbed.

Let's just say that I didn't talk the whole week.

Miranda POV (back in time)

I awoke strapped to a table tilted up so that I was at a forty-five degree angle. I blinked through the drowsiness you get after being injected with a substance that knocks you out. Oh, you haven't felt that before? Lucky duck.

A door beeped and opened, and a doctor walked in. It was a woman a few inches taller than me dressed in a long, white lab coat, holding a clipboard and looking very important and in charge. She had those glasses that you picture on a librarian, you know, the ones that sit on the end of the nose? And her hair was pulled back into a loose, shiny-dark bun. She walked into the room and peered at me through dark green eyes, like she was examining something under a microscope. She made some notes in a clipboard. Finally, I couldn't stand the silence, so I asked, "Where am I? What do you want?"

She looked at me, surprised, and replied, "You are at the Intstitute for Technology, Engineering, and Experimentation, or ITEX. My name is Dr. Polymer, head of Discovery and Research. You are the main subject of a new series of experimentation."

I gasped. "Experiments? I'm not an experiment! I'm a normal girl! Can I have my phone call? My mom can fix everything!" I sounded so desperate.

The doctor looked at me with indifference and spoke, "You are not in jail. You will receive no phone call, and you will follow our instructions exactly. Am I clear?" Her green eyes glittered with unmerciful coldness. I shivered and leaned back against the table, defeated. "Good. Now, let's get down to business. In our facility, we have two positions open for you. You can be a control, meaning that you will stay as you are and endure our experiments using only your original body's strength and agility. Or, you can become a new experiment, meaning that you will have a genetic alteration and endure our experiments using your new body's strength and agility. You have a choice."

I lay there, stunned. Wow, they were giving me a choice. (A.N. That was my sad attempt at sarcasm. It's hard to get sarcasm written down on FanFiction! I'm learning…) But in my case, I wasn't quite sure what the lesser of two evils was. Do their experiments as myself? Or as a new mutant... "I'll take number two, please." It sounded like I was ordering a meal from McDonald's. I just hoped that I was making the right decision.

The doctor left the room for me to just lie there, hating every moment of my eternal stay at this freaky place. A while later, she came back holding a tray of long, threatening-looking syringes. "What are those for?" I whispered, terrified out of my jeans.

"According to our previous records, your body already possesses innumerous amounts of avian-genetic coding, though improperly activated and therefore becoming recessive in your nuclear bodies and resting dormant. We will now activate it using enhanced enzymes and transmitters into the five main points of your anatomy. These long syringes will help us insert the solutions correctly into your bloodstream, and your body will render unconscious as a result. You will likely awaken in twelve to eighteen weeks, and we will monitor the physiological, emotional and mental changes your body will undergo."

I had no idea what she just said. Too many big words, and I wasn't that good in science. But I got the impression from her creepy eager face and the honking big needles that were waiting nearby that whatever was going to happen to me, it wouldn't be comfortable. I cringed as Dr. Polymer picked up the first shining, silver tube and attached the needle to it.

The first two injections will go into your right and left shoulder blades. You will feel some discomfort. She flipped me over using the restraints, and cut my shirt off of my back. "Hey!" I objected. "I just got that shirt last week!"

"Silence!"

She drove the needle into my back, and I screamed a bloodcurdling holler. The second went in, and I was crying huge, pain-filled tears. She flipped me back over. My back felt like it was on fire, like my bones were melting apart and her shoulder muscles felt like they were unraveling and being sewn together in a new, horrible pattern. Which, knowing these crazy scientists, that was probably what was going in my back. Considering the results later.

Another needle went into my heart, one in each lung, and the last one went through my forehead into my brain. I blacked out due to intense agony.

Max POV (months later)

Something was really going on with Nudge. Ever since her strange breakdown earlier in the week, she hadn't spoken a single word. It's actually kind of scary. A quiet Nudge is practically a dead Nudge, except breathing. I really missed her chatterbox mouth running off in our ears. We were all really worried.

Suddenly, she stood and yelled, "No! No, no, no nonononononononono! Not her! Not me! Why me?" I ran over and tried to comfort her, but she shoved me again.

She was hysterical. She was crying again, and sobbing out, "Why? Why me? Why me? Why me? Why, why me?" She fell to her knees and she called out into space her angry exclamations. "It's not fair! Why me?" 

A.N. Chapter two is done!

Nudge: Wow, ICBN. You make me sound really dramatic and schizo.

Me: I believe the term that FanFic writers use for that is OOC (I'm guessing that means Out of Character). In my story, you were foreshadowing what was to come. See, later on... –show her some pages on the computer for her to read a little-

Nudge: OH! But still, why did I have to cry so much? I don't cry that often-

Me: Yes you do!

Nudge: No I don't!

Me: You cried at Ari's funeral, and when Max and Fang left the Flock, and when Angel was kidnapped, and I'm pretty sure you cried when you left the Flock to go to school!

Nudge: That's different! Those were sad times! You would cry too!

Me: Would not.

Nudge: Would too.

Me: Would not!

Nudge: Would too! I am leaving you!

-silence as Nudge disappears-

Me: I really blew that, didn't I? -sigh- Well, stay tuned for the next chapter. Hopefully Nudge will be back by then...


	3. The rescue

A.N. Hey everyone! I wrote this on our twenty-one hours in the car on the way to my grandparent's house, but I couldn't post it until now!

Nudge: Hey everyone! I snuck a peek, and Chapter Four is going to be so awesome!

Me: Nudge, I thought I told you not to tell anyone!

Nudge: What? I didn't say that Max was going to help- (I cover her mouth)

Me: (sigh) Well, here's Chapter Three. Chapter Four is coming up, and it's "so awesome"!

**CHAPTER 3: The rescue**

Miranda POV

I slowly awakened to find myself on my side in a stone white cell. My back hurt like crazy, and so did my chest, and really my whole body. I felt like someone took my head, stuck it in the oven on HIGH, then cut off the rest of my body and put it through a steamroller. I struggled up to a sitting position. My clothes suddenly seemed too small for me, like I'd gotten a huge growth spurt overnight.

I crawled over to the single barred window and looked out. I gasped. Last time I checked, it was summer. But outside, the world was barren, cold, and dead; it was wintertime in Texas. I had been passed out for at least five months.

I fell back in shock, sitting down in a zombie-like manner. What were my parents doing right now? Were they searching for me, or had they given up? I sniffled, and realized I was crying. I rubbed my eyes, and stood to my feet.

"ITEX!" I called out into the dark space. "Get me out of here or you'll be sorry!" I wasn't sure I could to anything to this billion-dollar company, but it couldn't hurt to try to intimidate them…

Yeah right.

A door opened, and white light flooded the room. My breath caught in my throat as I saw the other "experiments" in cages. Some had two heads, others had none. Some were covered in fur like a bear's, and others were scaly like a fish. And I think they were all dead. It was terrible and disgusting.

I focused on the doctor, Dr. Polymer, who was making determined strides toward me. I stood, and realized that I had really grown. We now stood eye-to-eye. She spoke in her evil voice, "You're going to wish you hadn't said anything. It is time to begin your tests." A couple of those scary masked dudes came in, opened my cage and yanked me out.

I was dragged down hallways and stairs and through countless doors. We stopped in a huge arena, as big as a football stadium. Tables and doctors in white coats were positioned all over the place. Many of them were preparing needles and monitors and some were holding those heart paddles. "Fun," I grumbled sarcastically.

Nudge POV (A.N. Now the 2 time periods are together. Everything is in the Flock's time.)

We decided to go to the library to find directions to the address we found in the ITEX box. I sat down at a computer and laid my fingers on the keyboard. I found the password that a librarian with gray-brown hair used to log this computer on and off the network. I watched as she typed it in, and then returned to the present to copy it.

I opened a new, untraceable account and plugged in my flash drive that had a hacking program in it. Within minutes I had broken through the ITEX network firewalls and was scrolling through pages after pages of no-doubt highly confidential information. I desperately wanted to yell in triumph to Max, but then thought that if I started saying anything, I would go on forever. So I kept quiet.

I looked over at Max, who was still trying to work with Google Maps to find instructions to ITEX. I found the pages I needed and printed them out without going through them. I stuffed them into my pack and closed the illegal account permanently. Done.

I decided to look and see what the others were doing. Max was still struggling, so I figured we were going to be a while. Fang was by the music section, listening to a band I couldn't make out. Angel wasn't at the juvenile/picture books section like one would think, but roaming through the adult fiction shelves and flipping through Gone with the Wind. I loved that book.

Gazzy was, naturally, at the nonfiction section with encyclopedias on guns, explosions, bombs, and incognito equipment. He was enraptured in a huge book detailing Pearl Harbor and what went wrong there. I left him to it.

To my surprise, Iggy wasn't there with him. I looked around and found him at a table in the back. He seemed to be staring out into space. Then I saw the book in front of him. He was running his figures over the pages; he was reading Braille. I sat in the chair next to him silently and watched. He obviously knew I was there, but he didn't seem to mind. I watched his face as he read, with an entranced expression on his face.

When he finished the chapter, we sat quietly. "I didn't know you read, Iggy." He nodded. "It's cool." Another nod. I had to restrain myself from squealing at the top of my lungs in the library about how neat it was that a blind kid could read, and start pelting him with questions about how long he had been reading Braille, and how he learned and all of that stuff. But I didn't say anything.

Gazzy came over and said, "What're you doing?" He looked at Iggy's book, "Why are the pages blank?"

"It's Braille, Gazzy," I told him.

"Oh. Max finally has the directions, so we can go." We left the library.

Miranda POV

I began with the vital sign checkups, and then got a shot that made my heart race and gave me a killer fever. The creepy doctors took notes. Another needle gave me temporary black-and-white vision. More notes. It went on like that for at least three hours. When we stopped for a break, I was wiped. I lay on the ground, and they gave me stale bread, a brown banana, and a couple cups of lukewarm water. I inhaled it all.

With "lunch" over, I was launched headfirst back into "testing". The scariest part was that all of these doctors ENJOYED hurting me. Stopping my heart to see how long I would last before passing out, finding out how I reacted to breathing straight carbon dioxide for an hour… it all seemed like a fun game to them.

During my rest periods, I marveled at how my body was holding up. If I had stayed the way I was five months ago, I probably would have died by now. But those five shots they gave me made me faster, stronger, and more durable. I made the right choice after all, even if my back still hurt.

It must've been nighttime when they led me to a small, circular door in the ground. The doctors had me breathe pure oxygen for a while. I could take two deep breaths easily; it was like I had an extra pair of lungs. A scientist opened the round door in the floor, while another attached lots of those electrode-things all over me. They told me to take a few more deep breaths.

Dr. Palmer came over. "You will enter an underwater maze. There is only one exit, and you must find it. You will have as much time as you need, provided you don't drown first." They shoved me in.

The shock of the ice-cold water held me paralyzed for a few seconds. I looked around. There were two directions for me to go through, one that I was facing and one behind me. I thought. There was no way these people would drop me in facing the direction that I needed to go in. I swam into the tunnel behind me.

I followed the path of the underwater tunnel, aware that even my new enhanced lungs would give out eventually. I just kept swimming, turning left or right on instinct, running into countless dead-ends. Finally, I came to a ladder that led up to a round door. I pounded on it. I could see through the glass the doctors looking down at me. One moved to press a button, but another stopped him. They stood there arguing, gesturing wildly to me, while I pounded on the glass. If I didn't get out soon, I would drown for sure.

My lungs felt like they were about to burst. Black dots began to fill in my vision. NO! I was going to get out of here! I was going to live. But they still wouldn't open the door…

Max POV

I got the directions to ITEX off of Google Maps, which was a major pain in the butt to do, by the way. We were soaring over some city near Austin, looking for a big white building that said, I don't know, "ITEX: Where Evil Has Fun!" or something.

We finally came down to the destination Google gave us. It was a high school. Or so it seemed. Nudge touched the sidewalk and said, "ITEX people work here." So that settled that.

I didn't really have a plan this time. Fang and I had long since determined this situation a trap, so I kind of figured that we shouldn't bother with sneaking around and all that.

But then Angel, my traitorous, mind-reading Flock-mate, who used to be my baby, said, "Max, are you sure we should just barge in there? I think-"

"Angel, no one CARES what you think!" I snapped at her.

"She's right, Max." I whipped around to face Nudge, who now stood at my eye-level. How come I didn't notice she grew so fast? "Don't you think we can get more info if we steal it quietly than if we wait for them to hand it to us? Plus, we can take down this branch once and for all." Nudge usually didn't come up with the plan of action; it was generally Fang or me. But she had a point.

We did our usual undetected break-in. Somehow she had gotten into ITEX's files earlier and led us through the vents and halls while avoiding the guards. This place was like the School, but more professional. All the doctors and scientists were gone, so we broke into their offices, stole some papers and computer discs, and looked through the cages for any possible beings worth saving.

I was shocked at what we found. Every one of the experiments had failed terribly. All were dead.

Every single one.

We came to the "gym" last. I peered in the window. Here's where all the doctors were. Tables were set up all over the place, with the horrible experimental instruments and noises that reignited bad memories in each of us. All of the whitecoats were crowded around something at the opposite end. It was like an evil science fair.

"Okay, here's the plan," I told the Flock. "Gazzy, knock out the power switches on the wall. Hopefully, the lights will go out. While the whitecoats are running around freaked out, Angel will fly up above them and find out how many experiments are out there and tell Fang, Nudge and I where they are. Iggy can listen for anyone coming and hold the door open for us for a quick escape. All clear?" After getting head nods, I cracked open the door and checked to make sure the coast was clear before sending Gazzy out.

The plan was in motion. Angel reported that there was only one living experiment, and that it was trapped underwater. The whitecoats were screaming. It was super dark, even on bird-kid standards. Very weak emergency lights flickered in some corners.

Only two scientists remained at the far end of the room. They were arguing over a door in the floor.

One said, "We should take it out before it inhales too much water! Then we can run more tests while it still lives!"

The other said, "No, its air supply is still holding up! We should wait to see how long it can last!"

"Let me settle this for you," I snarled and Fang and I knocked them out while Nudge opened the floor hatch and dragged the experiment out of the water. It lay coughing and gagging and wheezing. I wondered how long it was down there. "Can you run?" I asked it.

I couldn't tell if it was able to stand up, due to the dark room, but somehow it kept up with us as we ran out the front doors of ITEX. The experiment looked really weak, and I wasn't sure it could fly if it was even built to do so. I scooped it up in my arms. It was lightweight, like the rest of the Flock. I would see what it looked like in the morning. The wet experiment passed out in my arms.

We went to our room in the motel, and I lay it down on some blankets in the corner. We didn't dare turn on the lights. ITEX was probably right on our tail, looking for us.

We all slept, triumphant.

A.N. Hope you liked it! TTFN!

Nudge: Bye!


	4. The discovery and the decision

A.N. Hey everyone! I had 68 hits last time I checked! Thanks for sticking with me! 

Nudge: Hey again! I think you're really gonna like this chapter! I know I do! There's this part where- 

Me: Nudge, freshly made cookies in the kitchen! 

Nudge: (Runs out the door to get some) 

Me: (snickering) Now she won't spoil it for you. I'll just add the finishing touches and… SUBMIT! Yes! 

Nudge: No fair! I wanted to be there! 

Me: You were distracted! Enjoy, readers! 

**CHAPTER 4: The discovery****  
**

Miranda POV 

I groaned and woke up in a strange room, I think in a motel. Someone had put a blanket over me to keep me warm from the freezing Austin night air. I took in my surroundings while I tried to piece together what had happened in my last moments of consciousness. 

A group of teens and kids had broken into the arena at ITEX and knocked out the lights. They seemed extremely athletic and well-prepared, and easily knocked out the scientists and doctors. One of them opened the door and pulled me out seconds before I would have passed out from lack of oxygen. I sucked in some air and followed them out the various doorways to the outside world. Then I just collapsed. 

Now I looked at my saviors. Though the night still made everything dark, I had developed some weird vision enhancements, like being able to pick out the general profiles of the other people in the room. They were all asleep, or resting. One of them was tall and dark, and seemed to almost blend into the wall. Oh wait! He actually was BLENDING INTO THE WALL! Cool or creepy, I'd decide later. 

Another tall boy was lounging in a chair. He had strawberry blonde hair and pale skin. He had to be the tallest in the group. A little boy and littler girl with blonde curly hair were flopped on a bed, side by side. They had to be siblings. 

I could hear the shower going in the bathroom, so someone was in there. 

That's when she swooped in. She fluttered through the open window on enormous wings that were feathered like a bird's. As her feet touched the floor, her wings flapped in. I dismissed it as a hallucination. Kids couldn't have wings. 

She was holding countless paper bags that probably held food. The aroma of McDonald's breakfast yummies filled the room, and the sleeping kids woke up at the scent. 

They dive-bombed the girl holding the food, and she handed them a few bags each. Man, these kids could eat! They were like wolves scarfing down fresh kill. The girl turned to me. "I have some for you, too," she said in a calming voice. 

She held out a wrapped, warm Egg McMuffin. My stomach growled so loudly I thought she could hear it from across the room. I inched forward and she pushed a bag of food to me. 

I munched contentedly on this food, then remembered my manners. "Thanks so much for saving me." 

She seemed surprised that I could speak. "You're welcome. I'm Max. The dark one is Fang, and that's Iggy." She motioned toward the tall pale one. "The two kids over there are Angel and the Gasman. Don't ask. And Nudge should be out of the shower soon. What's your name?" 

"I'm Miranda." 

Max continued handing out the food. The dawn of a new day shed its light through the windows, and the room began to gain color and definition. Max said, "Come into the light so we can see you better." I scooted into the light. Max gasped and dropped Iggy's meal on the floor. 

Max POV 

When I came into the motel room, everyone jumped on me for food. Hungry little fellers. I started to pass around the meals as evenly as I could, and remembered the mutant we rescued the day before. I looked over in the corner where I lay it down. Though it was still dark, I could tell that the experiment was moving around and taking in its surroundings. 

I gave it its meal, and it devoured it like the Flock did. Then it actually SPOKE. "Thanks so much for saving me." The voice was feminine, and seemed to have enough intelligence to talk, so I introduced the Flock. Last night, Fang and I decided to take care of it until it could go on its own. If it ever could go off on its own. Most of the experiments that ITEX and the School created ended up as major failures, and died within a few months. This one could talk and feed itself at least, but no one could be sure of its life expectancy. 

Morning light peeked through the motel windows, and I encouraged the mutant to come into the light so we could see it. It obeyed, and I looked it over. I was shocked at what I saw. The mutant was indeed a girl, with caramel-brown curly hair. She had mocha-colored skin and large, deep brown eyes. She couldn't be… I gasped and dropped Iggy's breakfast, still wrapped, on the motel carpet. 

Fang, Gazzy, and Angel were freaked out, too. Iggy, the only blind one, had no idea what was going on, and said, "Why is it so quiet? It's like I'm in a morgue. Pass me my food, Max." Silently, I handed Iggy his hash browns. This girl. She. Was. Nudge. 

In case you haven't read our earlier adventures, there was a time in our lives when we discovered that ITEX had cloned us all, making a Max II, Nudge II, Angel II, etc. I even had to beat up my clone. This mutant must have been Nudge II. She was exactly like Nudge, down to the hesitant smile she gave me in response to my freaked-out face. 

Nudge came in from her shower. "Good morning, Max. Great, you brought breakfast! Can I have mine?" Then she noticed the Nudge II. "OMG. What're YOU doing here? Has ITEX sent you to replace me?" Nudge was even more afraid than I was. She turned to me, declaring, "I'm the real Nudge, Max. You've got to believe me!" 

"I know it's you, Nudge. What I don't get is why she's here." 

The girl seemed uncomfortable under the stares of the Flock. And when she saw Nudge, she freaked out, too. "What's going on? Who are you?" 

There was silence in the room. Then Iggy yelled, "What on earth is happening here? Has everyone gone NUTS? Someone tell me what's happening?" Gazzy filled him in, and Iggy nodded, still looking confused. 

The girl stood up and looked Nudge in the face. I stood, too, ready to jump in if she suddenly attacked. Nudge hissed, "I'm the real Nudge. You're an imposter. You're Nudge II." 

The new girl laughed, and said, "No no no. I'm not 'Nudge II', whoever that is. I'm Miranda." She paused, and said, "What I don't get is why you look exactly like me."  
Nudge looked confused, too. I spoke up, "How about you tell us everything that happened, Miranda." 

Miranda POV 

The-girl-who-looked-like-me started calling me Nudge II and an imposter. And the tall kid named Iggy must be blind because he needed everything explained to him. Max told me to tell them everything that happened, and I did. 

When I got to the part about the choice between the gene injections and staying normal, Max interrupted. "Wait a minute. You mean you weren't always a mutant?" 

"No," I said. "I'm a normal girl. Or at least I was. I just got some shots and passed out for a long time, like five months. When I woke up yesterday, I came out stronger and survived a lot of tests that I wouldn't have lived through had I stayed the same." I finished my story. We all sat quietly, and I thought hard. This girl named Nudge was so like me. Down to the double blink that we both do when we are frustrated or confused. 

We were identical. Almost like… 

"Twins!" I yelled, and everyone jumped. "Is your real name Nudge?" I asked her. 

"Well, I think my real name is Monique." 

"Monique? MONIQUE?" I was super energetic as I recalled something my parents told me a few years ago. "Almost thirteen years ago, a baby named Monique went missing. My parents were so depressed. Sometimes they looked at me and murmured about Monique. It all makes sense now! You're my twin sister, Monique!" 

Nudge POV 

Miranda grinned as she said, "You're my twin sister, Monique!" I almost fell over right then and there. 

"No way," I said. "I think I'd know if I had a twin sister. Besides, you're forgetting one crucial detail." I stood up and whipped open my red-brown wings.

She stared at them. "They're beautiful."

"If we're twins, you'll have them, too." 

Miranda whispered, "Wings? No, I've never had wings." Then she stuttered, "B-but my back does hurt… Um…" 

"I'll check, Miranda." Max helped her take off her jacket. I could see that her shirt was stretched tight, like she had a small backpack on under it. Her clothes were still a little damp from the underwater experiment the day before. Max took out her pocketknife, and Miranda flinched. "It's okay. I'm just going to cut away the fabric on your back. Turn around." 

We all held our breath as we watched the blade rip the shirt in one long tear. 

A small brown feather fluttered down from Miranda's back. 

I fainted. 

Miranda POV 

I felt such relief when Max cut a slit in my shirt's back. I sighed, then jumped when I heard a thump behind me. Nudge had fainted onto the ground. 

I saw a fuzzy brown thing on the floor, and picked it up. It was a feather. 

A feather. 

An actual bird's feather. 

I felt my face pale in fear, my heart pounding like a Civil War drum, and touched my back hesitantly. I felt my shoulder, and traced it down until I felt something soft and downy. I grabbed it, and screamed. 

I had wings. 

I had wings. 

I had wings. 

I fainted. 

Max POV 

I was in shock. Before I was shocked, but now I was IN shock. I just sat there, staring at Miranda's back. 

She reached behind her and touched her wings, screamed, and fainted. Now both of the "twins" were passed out on the ground, Iggy stalked out of the room, angry that no one would tell him what was going on, Gazzy and Angel's eyes were round as the biscuits on their Egg McMuffins, and Fang was Fang. 

He was the only one who kept his head. He splashed some water on Nudge's face to wake her up, and shook me until I snapped out of my stupor. Then he took the Gasman out of the room to go find Iggy. 

That left the four of us girls. I got one of Nudge's T-shirts and a Flock-style oversized hoodie for Miranda to use. She had woken up again, and kept yanking on her feathers. "Stop that! You'll hurt yourself." She started to cry, and I felt bad for her. Her life was changed forever. Miranda had been kidnapped from her home, had a major DNA change, went through a whole day of horrible experiments, was saved by a group of winged people, woke up to find out that she had found her long-lost twin sister, and then learned that she had honking BIRD WINGS! 

I hugged her, and told her everything was going to be okay. But I couldn't be sure of that. When Ari had his DNA changed as a little kid, he only lived a few years. Miranda was almost a teenager. She might not last as long, if her body rejected the avian DNA in her. 

She gained her composure, and whispered, "It hurts." Her back hurt. It probably would, after getting new feathery appendages grown out of it. I noticed that her wings were folded wrong. 

When our wings fold into our back, the "elbow" part touches our back just below our shoulders. The rest of the wings hang down, and the feathers flatten against the "arm" part of the wing, you know, the part of the wing on the top with all of the muscles on it. The result is a small, skinny diamond shape that folds up flat against our back. Miranda's wings were curled up like enormous tubes, and the muscles seemed underdeveloped and weak. Her feathers were fuzzy and downy like Angel's were a few years ago, before her mature feathers grew in. Miranda's wings were baby wings, like the wings we had when we were born. The scientists realigned them when we got old enough, and Jeb adjusted Angel's wings when we were living in the E-shaped house in Colorado. 

I had to realign Miranda's wings. "Nudge and Angel, come over here. I'm going to need your help." To Miranda: "Your back hurts because your wings haven't been straightened yet. Once I finish, all the aching will go away, but you're going to have to let me work with them." She nodded. Here we go. 

"Angel, keep her calm. You know what to do. Nudge, you're going to copy everything I do on the right wing with the left wing. Exactly how I do it." They nodded, and I had Miranda lie on her stomach. I cut away the rest of her shirt. 

"Okay, let's start." I thought back to when Jeb did this on Angel. First he "unrolled" the wings. "Nudge, watch what I'm doing. I slowly pulled on the wing, and Miranda winced. I stretched the wing out until it lay flat, and held it there with my knee. Nudge did the same. Then I took each bone and aligned it with the next one, until the wing lay in a straight line. I brushed away some of the fuzzy feathers and saw that her adult feathers were grown in underneath. "Hey, Angel, can you get some big bath towels and wet them with warm water?" 

Nudge and I used the towels to detach most of the downy feathers and straightened the long, red-brown feathers. Finally, the hard part. I was a little scared to do this, but it was the most important. If I messed up, it would be bad. I ran my hand down Miranda's spine. There. A vertebra that was tilted out, not in. "Stand back, Nudge." 

I sucked in a deep breath, counted to three, and shoved the vertebrae in. A loud click sounded, and Miranda's wings whipped in automatically, folded perfectly into her back. She sighed in relief. "Thanks Max." 

"Now go take a shower to wash off anything else." After she went to the bathroom, I opened the door to let the guys in and told them about our success. 

"Cool, Max! You're like a bird-kid chiropractor!" Gazzy smiled. 

"Flock meeting," I whispered. "I think it's understood that Miranda's going to stay with us, right?" 

"What if she's a spy of ITEX?" Fang seemed very skeptical. 

"Yeah, right, Fang," I said sarcastically. "ITEX wouldn't do all of that stuff to one of their own workers. She's not from our world. She was just a normal girl. A girl who had her life taken away from her and was turned into a bird kid freak. Miranda won't survive without us." 

Miranda POV 

I sat up, my back feeling better already. I looked at my newfound sister and smiled. "Now we're exactly alike." 

She looked at me, and said, "Actually, I think you'll find out that I talk WAY more than you." 

I smirked deviously, "Wanna bet?" 

Nudge whispered, "You're on." 

We were just jabbering away, for several minutes straight. We talked about what had happened in the last twelve years. We discussed fashion styles, and found out that we liked the same designers. Nudge described her family, and all of the cool powers they had. I was kind of freaked out when I found out about Angel's abilities to read and control minds. 

Max came in. Nudge and I stopped talking, and she told us, "Miranda, you're without a doubt Nudge's sister. A family member of one of the Flock is a member of the whole Flock as far as we're concerned. If you want to, you can stay with us." 

Stay with them? "You mean... forever?" What about my family? Then I realized something. I had WINGS on my back. I wasn't completely human anymore. Would they even want me? Probably not. But these kids actually knew how to take care of themselves. And Max was especially qualified. She fixed my wings, for crying out loud. Plus, I didn't want to live alone as the freaky girl with bird organs. "I'd definitely like to stay. With Nudge and all of you," I whispered. 

"Welcome to the Flock." 

A.N. Hope you liked this! The next chapter is on its way soon! Nudge here wants to say a few words... 

Nudge: Hi... I stayed up all night long for New Years' Day... Exhausted... Don't want to talk. 

Me: That's a first. 

Nudge: Well, don't get used to it... Once I'm rested up... the Nudge Channel will be back... on the air... Just you wait- (falls over, fast asleep, snoring) 

Me: Well, that's all folks! Please R&R!


	5. You're insane!

**A.N. Hey everyone! Here comes Chapter 5. By the way, you know what a big fan I am of Nudge, so check out my profile to see a drawing I did of her!**

**Nudge: Hi again! I finally persuaded Miranda to join me in ICBN's world, because one mutant bird girl is a lonely existence. Hi Miranda!**

**Miranda: Hey. I don't really wanna be here...**

**Nudge: Oh come on, you'll love it! ICBN, say hi!**

**Me: Hey, Miranda! And if you're anything like Nudge, you won't survive to next Tuesday. Remember: I literally brought you into this world (meaning FanFiction's world) and I can take you out of it just as easily!**

**Miranda: (terrified and trembling)**

**Nudge: (glaring at me) That's no way to make her feel welcome. Don't worry Miranda. She won't do anything to you.**

**Me: She's right. I already know that you won't be any trouble, since I created you. Nudge, however, is James Patterson's. She's unpredictable...**

**Nudge: Hope you like this chapter! It's a long one!**

**CHAPTER 5: You're insane!**

Miranda POV

The Flock and I were sitting around in a circle on the floor, munching on the McDonald's that had grown cold because of all of the drama that happened this morning. I stuck with Nudge, a little wary of the others.

Max seemed nice enough, although she constantly muttered to herself and occasionally yelled out random comments like, "That makes no sense!" or "What do you know? You don't run my life!" (Nudge told me that Max had a Voice that talked in her head, and I think it must have been taking its toll on her mind.) But Max genuinely seemed to care about us.

Fang was just plain out scary. He sat there like a stone, with an expressionless face and a solemness that seemed way too old for him. He was obviously "with" Max, and they seemed inseparable.

The Gasman, or Gazzy, seemed like a nice little boy, but he was constantly tooting in his pants. Occasionally he'd say sorry, but it seemed like the Flock was used to it. To me, it seemed like a small explosion was always going off. I would try to stay outside a ten-foot radius from now on.

That girl, Angel, seemed like an adorable little kid. But she seemed like she knew things that she shouldn't, like everyone's deepest secrets. I felt a little uncomfortable, knowing that she was able to hear all of my thoughts. How could the Flock stand to have zero privacy with her around? One other thing. Angel was always staring at me, like she was trying to figure something out.

That boy Iggy seemed really cool. I kind of felt awkward around him when I remembered that he's blind. It's easy to forget that because he knows his way around and how to survive so easily. But when we were watching TV, and I yelled, "Iggy, did you see that?" He mumbled no, and walked away. I felt so bad about that, but Nudge told me not to worry about it. But how could I not? I just insulted him horribly. I need to figure out a way to make it up to him...

Nudge. She's so awesome. I had always wanted a sister, and I finally found her! We were best friends, we liked all of the same things, we had the same speaking problem (meaning once we started talking, it was really hard to stop), and she encouraged me as I got used to having hollow bones and giant lungs and air sacs and raptor vision and raptor hearing and the height increase and the muscle strength and oh yeah, the WINGS on my back.

I looked at my new "family" and just had to ask. "Um... this is probably a ridiculous question, but... Can you actually fly?"

There was an enormous silence. Max looked at Fang incredulously, Gazzy snickered, Angel rolled her eyes, and Iggy yelled, "Duh! What do you think the wings are for?"

Man, I felt so incredibly dense. Of course they could fly. Of course. I was probably blushing up a storm, and Nudge noticed.

"Come on, guys. Give her a break! It's not like she grew up knowing this stuff! We know that this is all realistic. This is all new to her!" Gazzy was still cackling, and Nudge snapped, "Give it a rest, Gazzy!" He stopped, with a little smirk on his face.

Max spoke up, "It's okay, Miranda. But yes, we can fly." She smiled, "And soon, you will too."

I was dumbfounded. "I don't think I can fly, Max... Like Nudge said, I never grew up knowing this stuff. I think it's too late for me."

"Please. I taught a guy three years older than you. And he had only been living eight months! Long story, but it won't be a problem to teach you. I promise."

I thought a little bit, and asked, "How are you going to teach me?" Max grinned a grin that I knew meant trouble. Oh great. What was she going to do, push me off a skyscraper?

Nudge POV

Oh my gosh. Max was going to push my twin sister off a skyscraper. "Are you insane?" After realizing that Max might use some unconventional and DANGEROUS methods for teaching Miranda how to fly, I insisted on going too, in case something went wrong.

Max yelled over the wind that was blowing hard atop the Frost Building in Austin. "This is the best way! There's plenty of air to help her get some lift, and there's plenty of height for her to catch herself! Plus, the shock she'll feel when she's falling to the earth will spike the nerves in her shoulders and get her to feel her wings!"

We had learned that although Miranda had wings, she couldn't sense them yet. They were like hair. Her nerves were dead. She couldn't spread them on will like the rest of us. So if she was falling to her death, she wouldn't be able to fly if she wanted to, because her wings couldn't help her at all. So I told Max, "That's such faulty logic, Max!"

Miranda was just staring in fear down the side of the giant pointy building. Then it hit me. "Are you afraid of heights?" I asked her.

She nodded, and I turned back to Max, "She's terrified! You can't do this to her!"

Max said calmly, "Nudge, just trust me. Have I ever steered you wrong?"

I glared at her. "Yes, several times. Like when we were going to get Angel from the School and you stole a car, and we got in a head-on accident and ended up in cages! Or when you split up with Fang and we ended up prisoners of ITEX! Or that time where-"

Max cut me off. "Just trust me. I promise on my life that I won't let anything happen to her." Then she pushed Miranda over the edge. I ran to jump after her, but Max held me back. "Wait for a few seconds. If she doesn't fly, I'll go catch her."

We looked over the edge. Miranda was shrieking at the top of her lungs and not looking like she was going to fly any time soon. This could not end well.

Miranda POV

I was going to die. I thought Max was a little nuts before, but now she proved to be INSANE. She brought me to the Frost Building and shoved me over the edge. Now I was plummeting to my dead, and accelerating too quickly for them to ever catch me.

My life wasn't extraordinary until these last few days. I went to school, watched TV, and drank soda like any other teenager. And then I get wings grown on my back and suddenly I'm expected to survive falling from 515 feet! No doubt about it. I was going to die.

Then the image of my twin sister, Nudge, sprang into my mind. I had known her for less than twenty-four hours. I would never grow up with her. We would never meet the men of our lives. We would never be friends again.

At that thought, intense grief broke in my body, and a zap shocked my shoulder blades. Like a small explosion, but not as destructive. I yelped, and suddenly I could feel my wings. I could sense every feather's position, where they attached to my back, the potential strength in the muscles. I spread them out, and I was floating. Not falling. I was going to live another day after all! I did an experimental flap, and rose several feet. I flapped again, and again, and soon I was back up at the top of the Frost Building, heading toward Nudge and Max.

Max POV

She did it! My method worked once again! Miranda was flying. I would have caught her if she reached one hundred feet without her wings out, using my warp flying powers. But I didn't have to.

Miranda was flapping her way towards us!

WHAM!

She crashed into me, and tackled me into the wall of the building. I was caught by surprise, but then instincts took over. She started punching at me pathetically, and I easily blocked her. Miranda was mad. Not mad, LIVID.

Nudge dragged her away from me, and I stood to my feet, yelling, "What was that for? I just taught you how to fly!"

Miranda hissed at me, "By pushing me to my death? I don't want you to 'teach' me anything EVER AGAIN! Why would you do that?" I looked at her face and realized that she had been crying. "I literally thought I was going to die! Have you ever felt that? That there's no hope for you and your life is going to end in a horrible way?"

I looked her in the eye and said, "Many times. If you're going to stay with us, then you've got to get used to that. And NEVER EVER GIVE UP! Life's to valuable to do that."

She just glared at me, and was about to lunge at my face again, when Nudge yelled, "It was my idea!"

"What?" Miranda and I said in unison.

"It was my idea to push you off this building. Max just carried it out, because I was too chicken to." I wondered why Nudge was taking credit for this, then she glanced at me with a _Don't argue, I know what I'm doing_ face. "Don't take it out on Max."

Miranda looked thoughtful. "You did it to help me?" Nudge nodded. "Thanks."

It hit me. Nudge knew that Miranda would never accept that I thought of this. But her own sister? It was an act of love in her head, not torture. So I let Nudge take the credit. Nudge and I gave her some tips on steering and banking, and then we went back to the motel. 

The Gasman POV

I couldn't tell them apart. It was literally impossible. I'd easily think that Miranda was Nudge II, except that Nudge II would have some differences. These two were exactly the same. They just talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and talked and TALKED!

AND they looked exactly alike.

Nudge on the right, Miranda on the left, I reminded myself. Wait... One of them went to the bathroom. I FORGOT!

I looked at my little sister. _Angel, a little help here? _I thought to her.

She responded, _Nudge is on the left now, Gazzy. Miranda is the one with the crush on Iggy._

WHAT?

She winced mentally, _Oops, maybe I shouldn't have said that..._

Miranda had a crush on Iggy. Ah. Now I noticed her discreet glances at my best friend. This was interesting. Maybe I'll try to have some fun with this...

Iggy POV

Miranda was a pain. Not her, specifically. Just how hard it made my life now. She sounded exactly like Nudge, walked the same as Nudge. I couldn't tell if they looked alike, for obvious reasons. So whenever Nudge/Miranda asked me something, I paused, trying to figure out who was talking. ARGH!

Being blind is harder than I let on. I've adjusted somewhat, but it's hard. Like those times when someone says, "Did you see that?" I will never see anything ever again. Unless we make an unlikely trip to Antarctica. So I try not to make a big deal about it, because there's no sense in bumming out the rest of the Flock.

Gazzy walks over, and whispers, "Miranda has a crush on you." He snickers and runs away.

Great. Just what I needed. Now I can't tell if Nudge or Miranda is flirting with me. Why does my life have to be so complicated? The room suddenly goes silent, except for the Gasman's snickering. Did I say that out loud?

Miranda POV

I didn't have a crush on Iggy. Don't believe anything they said! I was just intrigued at how he could keep up with things like walking around without crashing into a wall and stuff like that.

The person who was seriously creeping me out was Angel. She was always staring at me with this weird look in her eyes, like she was peering into my soul. Oh wait, she was. I could feel a tiny tickle in my brain every now and then.

Suddenly Iggy groaned, "Why does my life have to be complicated?" Gazzy was cackling in the corner and Angel had a wide-eyed innocent look. Iggy looked embarrassed and left the room.

I looked at Nudge and shrugged. It was like looking in a mirror. She was no-doubt going to be my best friend. Max was like the mother/mentor of the Flock. Fang was the constant, the one who always stayed the same, no matter what happened. Iggy was the funny guy, the one who kept us on our toes with his sarcastic humor. Gazzy was... smelly and adorable at the same time. But Angel... she was...

"Miranda? Anyone home?" Nudge was waving a hand in front of my face. I blinked.

What just happened? It was like my brain scattered. I forgot what I was thinking about. Weird. Only one person had "mind powers"... Angel-

Just then, Gazzy whispered, "Three, two, one!" And he let one rip. It wasn't a toot. Not even a small explosion or a fart. It was a nuclear bomb! The room was filled with this disgusting artificial-looking-yet-totally-real greenish-brown gas, and a horrible smell knocked me out.

Angel POV

_Thanks, Gazzy_, I told him with my mind. Miranda was passed out on the ground, and Nudge was looking woozy herself. I had time to hold my nose, Fang was taking a shower in the bathroom, Iggy was somewhere else, and Max went out to get some lunch.

Miranda was getting dangerously close to finding out what I was doing. I mixed up her thoughts, but she bounced back really fast. So I told Gazzy to unleash his "special gift". My brother didn't need a reason; he enjoyed it.

Fang came out of the bathroom and stared at what was taking place. Gazzy was rolling hysterically on the floor, Miranda was unconscious, Nudge was crying tears from the acidic gas, I was sitting alone on a bed, and the older kids were gone.

"We really can't leave you four alone, can we?"

**A.N. Hey! I think I'll find out what this Project PULL thing is. Something to do with every other Friday... Well, this is the first Friday of the year, so I'll start today! Actually, I'll post EVERY FRIDAY!**

**My good friend Kleenex (not her real name) is madly in love with Iggy, so I will from now on base Miranda on her! And she has happily joined me, along with Nudge and Miranda!**

**Nudge: Hi!**

**Miranda: Why did you have to do that to me ICBN? Gazzy's knockout gas is a horrible way to pass out! How about Angel throwing a book at me with her mind or something?**

**Kleenex: Yeah! Except Angel doesn't have telekinetic powers!**

**Me: Yet...**

**Angel: Hey guys! What are you talking about?**

**Nudge, Miranda, Kleenex, and Me: Uh... nothing!**

**Angel: If you don't tell me the truth then I'll read your minds...**

**Me: No you can't! I have author powers in this AN! Your mind powers are useless against us! Ha!**

**Angel: (doing the Bambi eyes) Please tell me...**

**Me: Your Bambi eyes don't work on me. No way. Not a chance. Absolutely, positively, forever NO!**

**Miranda: You're really making a big deal out of nothing ICBN. Angel, we're talking about you.**

**Nudge: Yeah. You're freaky.**

**Angel: I know.**

**Nudge, Miranda, Kleenex, and Me: You do?**

**Angel: I can read James Patterson's mind, you know. He gave me these powers, and he can't take them away. So I know that I am freaky. AND I LIKE IT! HAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**Kleenex: Point proven.**

**So readers: Alex Taylor, you've been doing great! Thanks for the encouragement. The rest of your readers need to review! For some reason my computer won't let me reply to your reviews. But I'll reply in the chapters following, unless you say you don't want to in your review.**

**But here's the thing. I'm going to do something I've seen a lot of authors do. Blackmail or something like that. I'm not going to post another chapter until I get a review from at least five different people. I want to know that you people really exist. Okay? Okay.**

**Angel, Me, Kleenex, Nudge, and Miranda: TTFN!**


	6. Authority test

A.N. You all failed on my five-review-demand, but my good friend Kleenex replied and has an official FanFiction account! (origummy) Welcome to my Author's Note Headers and Footers!

Nudge: Hi again!

Miranda: Those of you who read this and didn't review, SHAME!

Kleenex: Yes! Fo' SHAME! You made po' lil' Kleenex have to review all by herself!

Me: The truth is, in my profile, I said I'd post at least every Friday. But I still need at least one review from someone other than Kleenex, okay? Thanks.

Nudge, Miranda, Kleenex, Me, and Angel: ENJOY!

**Chapter 6: Authority test**

Miranda POV

The green stinky stuff still filled the air when I came to. I struggled to my feet. Nudge was rubbing her eyes and coughing, and Angel was holding her nose. The Gasman was just laughing, little trails of fart gas streaming from his behind. Ugh.

Nudge wheezed, "Gazzy, that was totally disgusting. Max is going to get you!"

"I sure am," a furious voice sounded from the doorway. Max was back, and she was MAD. "Gosh, Gazzy! How many bean burritos did you eat recently?"

Gazzy had a scared look in his face as he backed away from the Angry Max. He darted for the window and dove out. Max went after him, leaving Fang, Nudge, Angel and me alone.

Angel. I was thinking something about Angel before I passed out. I went back in my memory. Oh yeah! My brain felt scattered and all that stuff. I turned to look at the blonde 7-year-old. "Angel?"

"Yes?" she answered sweetly. I think she's a very good actor.

I walked over and sat by her on the bed. "Were you in my mind earlier?"

"I'm in everyone's mind. All the time. I can't help it."

"Did you mess up my thoughts?" She was silent, and I felt that little tickling sensation again. I mentally pushed it aside irritably and repeated my question, "Did you mess up my thoughts, Angel?"

"Maybe."

Fang now came over and told her, "You know what Max and I talked to you about, Angel. You agreed you wouldn't do it again."

I felt the tickling in my brain, and I forced it back really hard. Angel skidded off the bed. Whoa. She stood and glared at me, and I glared back. _I am more powerful than you_, she said in my mind.

_Maybe so_, I agreed, but _that's no reason to fool around with people's thoughts._

_I can do whatever I want_, she declared. And instead of a tickling sensation, I felt stabbing pain in my temples. I winced, and staggered back as she mentally stomped on my brain.

_Not in my head, you can't_, I countered. And I returned the fire. She yelped as she was thrown against the wall. Oh, my gosh. Did I do that?

I felt a change in my mind. It was like watching a movie. I was powerless against this force that took hold of my body. I felt hot, almost sweating, and a crazy, unnatural strength poured into my muscles.

Angel was looking at me with a death stare, and I felt her attack batter my brain. But it didn't hurt; it just annoyed my subconscious, like a pinch. I took long, unusual strides over to her and tackled her to the ground, holding her in a chocking headlock.

What was I doing? And why couldn't I stop?

Nudge POV

Max had trained us all to be prepared if any one of us suddenly attacked another. But I never actually expected it to happen. Miranda had gone nutso, and I was frozen in place, stunned.

But when I got past the shocked realization that a Flock member had gone bad, I started to run to take her down. But a strong force shoved me and Fang back, and we slammed against the wall of the room. By then Miranda had Angel in a headlock, and Angel was choking. Tears flooded out of my eyes as I saw my twin sister trying to kill one of my best friends. This was a nightmare, and I couldn't wake up.

I yelled, "Miranda, stop! What are you doing?" And she turned to me. Her eyes were all wrong. They weren't my sister's eyes. They were a bright, light turquoise, and they were blazing with an uncharacteristic intensity.

Something was VERY wrong with Miranda.

Max POV

_Max_, the Voice said urgently in my head.

I snapped, _What do you want? I'm kind of busy chasing Gazzy for tear-gassing the motel room._

_Your Flock is in danger._

_What?_ I froze in midair. _What is it? Erasers? Flyboys?_

_It's Miranda._

_Miranda? But she's Nudge's sister. She's a good guy._

_Not now. Angel is weakening. Go to them. NOW. _The Voice rarely seemed so urgent, so I scooped up the mischievous Gasman and warp-flew back to the hotel room.

_Careful, Max. There is a strong force field in the room. Fly quickly through the left window, before she senses you are there._ I followed the Voice's instructions, releasing Gazzy and crashing through the glass. I saw Miranda, who looked so much like Nudge, with an arm around Angel's neck, and tackled her with enough force to take down an Eraser. Angel broke free, and Miranda tried to kick me away.

She's really strong, I thought. Stronger than Nudge. Unnaturally strong. I had no choice but to punch her like an enemy.

Whap! Her face flew to the side, and she lay still.

Miranda POV

Wham! Max finally tackled me to the ground, and I lost my grip on Angel. Punch me, Max. Please punch me! She did, and I regained control of my own body. I groaned. Man, can that girl punch hard! My brain hurt like crazy, from fighting Angel mentally. And my muscles felt like jelly.

Nudge ran over and grabbed my face. She yanked it up to face hers and screamed, "What on earth is wrong with you?"

I whispered, "I don't know."

Nudge POV

I peered into my sister's strange blue-green eyes and noticed as they swirled back to their natural brown. "What on earth is wrong with you?"

She wheezed, "I don't know. Max can you let me up?" Max stood back, protecting Angel and me with her body.

Miranda stood to her feet shakily, and grabbed her head. "It was like someone else took over me. I couldn't do anything to stop it." She turned to Angel, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to do anything to you." Angel glared at her, but I also saw something in there that I didn't expect: true fear. Angel was scared of my twin sister.

Miranda asked Max, "I've never had that happen before. How is that even possible?"

Max looked at her with a look I've only seen her give to Jeb and our enemies. "You are in our world now. You've been experimented on, and you probably have something inside you from ITEX."

"There's that name again, ITEX," she said. "What is it?"

Max sighed, and we all sat down. "ITEX is our archenemy. We supposedly defeated them several months ago, but somehow they've rebuilt, and reinstated their genetic experimentation program. You were taken to one of their Schools. We came from a different one, in Death Valley. But ITEX has an arm in every industry. They control a lot of companies throughout the world. They're bad news, and we have to stop them once and for all, before they hurt anyone else."

Max rolled up her sleeve to show her forearm. "I had a microchip implanted in my wrist when I was small. It took records of things and sent them back to ITEX. That was over a decade ago, I suspect. Nowadays, they can do worse. Perhaps they could create mind-controlling chips."

Miranda POV

I heard"... mind-controlling chips," and my mind went blank in terror. An evil worldwide corporation had a computer chip stuck somewhere in my body and could take control of me anytime they pleased? This punishment sure beat my loss of cell phone privileges a few weeks ago.

"C-can I take it out?" I asked, horrified.

"Not a good idea, Miranda," Max replied. "My chip was so far into my nerves that I lost the use of my arm, until ITEX themselves fixed it. I don't think we should take a chance with your mind."

"There's got to be a way to fix this!" Nudge exclaimed. "Miranda can't stay like this forever!"

Fang, surprisingly, spoke up, "The fact is, Miranda, that if we don't get the chip out, you might have more episodes like the one just now. And that's an endangerment to the Flock. If Max didn't show up in time, you could have seriously hurt Angel."

He was right, of course. I could injure, and possibly kill, my new family if this didn't get taken care of. "What do you think we should do, Max?"

"Well, first things first, I think we should go to my mom's and get you an x-ray. As soon as Iggy gets back-" she stopped at the sound of knocking on the motel door.

Iggy POV

After my embarrassing outburst, I left the motel room and took off into the skies, the one place where everything made sense. The cold, wet clouds; the fresh, clean, thin air; the feeling of my powerful wings pounding up and down, propelling me through the atmosphere. 

I pushed all thoughts of self-pity out of my head, and just enjoyed the feeling of flying. That's when I heard it: a super-high-pitched, radiating beat that pulsated into my head. I'd heard it before, back at the U.S. Naval Base in Hawaii. The sound of radio waves. My super-mutant hearing picked it up, and I turned toward the source. The waves were aimed in a definite direction, and I joined up with the beams, just on a whim that something was up.

I felt the return beams of the receiver, and folded my wings, freefalling to the destination. It got louder and louder, until I almost couldn't tell which direction was up. I landed and followed the signal to a very familiar door. The motel. Then the radio waves stopped, and I lost the signal.

So someone was using a very strong radio to communicate over several miles. Interesting.

I followed the path back to our room and heard discussion inside. I knocked on the door, and heard Gazzy's footsteps. As it opened, the room went silent. I could practically feel the tension between the Flock.

"What happened?"

"Miranda got possessed by ITEX and tried to kill Angel," the Gasman quietly informed me.

I just stood, confused. "Come again?"

"We think that Miranda has a chip in her, and ITEX is using it to control her brain and her body." Max had that tone that I had gotten used to over the years, meaning that a fight was about to happen and she was more than ready for it.

"That explains the radio waves," I commented, and recounted my discovery.

"No doubt about it," Max said determinedly. "ITEX is controlling Miranda, and she can't even stop it."

"So we've got to get it out, right?" I realized with immense dread about the reality: "We have to force ITEX to take Miranda's chip out."

"First things first, I think that we should go to my mom's," Max declared.

"Yeah! Chocolate chip cookies!" Nudge cheered.

Angel POV

Miranda was scary. I tried to suppress her thoughts, and she pushed me off the bed without touching me. And then when I attacked, she threw me against the wall. Then she choked me with a strength only Max could have.

Fang and Nudge were shoved across the room, and I stared in fear at Miranda's face. I noticed her eyes. They were a strange, bright blue-green color, and her face looked like Nudge's when we fought against the Erasers. Really focused.

I searched into her mind carefully, reading her thoughts. But they weren't her thoughts. It was like a computer's voice, saying, MUSCLES TENSE TIGHTER. TIGHTEN GRIP. INCREASE SHIELDING POWER. And her body responded.

I learned the term for Miranda's power back when I was held captive at the School. Telekinesis. And she was strong.

Finally, Max burst through the window and took her down. I breathed a little harder, but I didn't die of suffocation because I used my underwater-breathing skills. It wasn't as effective as it is in the ocean, but I got enough oxygen through my "gills".

Miranda's eyes flashed back to brown, and her thoughts were her own. Something else had controlled her. And they could do it again at any time.

Max discussed a plan. We would go to Dr. Martinez's house and see what could be done. If nothing worked, then we would go to ITEX and make them take the chip out. The details were well-thought out, and it seemed like a good plan, but deep down inside I knew that something was going to go wrong.

Dr. Polymer POV

I observed all of the Subjects' reactions to the results of the Authority Test in the New Subject's brain chip through the high-tech surveillance cameras in my office. They seemed to be making plans, formulating possible strategies for achieving their goal. Interesting.

I began to take down some notes, when the woman over the intercom announced, "Dr. Polymer, she has arrived."

"Send her in." I spun around in my chair and pulled out my files to lie out on my desk. The door opened, and the woman entered. "Please have a seat."

"I understand you have the information my firm requires?" she spoke in a cold, businesslike tone. Much like my own.

"Right here. And in return, you are willing to give us information on the Subjects." We exchanged folders and examined the papers. After reassuring myself that they were all signed and valid, I leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially, "So. What's been happening?"

She smirked and leaned in to whisper in my ear, "They've taken the bait. And soon they will return to the Initial Subject's temporary safe house. I will meet them there and gather needed information from the New Subject and report back here."

"Excellent. ITEX appreciates your cooperation. Dr. Dwyer."

We shook hands. "Please. Call me Brigid."

A.N. I've always hated Brigid. Who does she think she is, trying to get a boy seven years younger than her? Trust me, in my fanfic, she is GOING DOWN!

Kleenex: YA-hey! Three cheers for the breakage of bad people! *whee!*

Angel: …I always knew you were evil, Miranda! I always knew.

Miranda: News flash, Angel. I'm not evil. I never was, and I never will be. ITEX is evil, DUH! (thinks to herself: And I think you're evil, too!)

Nudge: I can't wait to see what happens next!

Me: Remember, everyone: one review by next Friday (Kleenex's reviews won't count). Next chapter, ITEX's evil plan will be unveiled! See you next time!


	7. Dr Martinez, meet my twin!

**Chapter Seven: Dr. Martinez, meet my twin!**

AN: Okay guys. First of all, if you have been waiting for almost five months for me to update, you probably hate me. So I'm sorry. I am a high schooler and as such have things like homework, sports tournaments, tests, and the dreaded FanFiction killer, Final Exams. I'm just saying that I have valid excuses.

But I intent to make things right. I will finish this story, even though it's not as exciting to me as it once was. It is, however, my first FanFic and I WILL FINISH IT!

Miranda: *yawns* Wow. What day is it? JUNE! ICBN, YOU PUT ME TO SLEEP FOR FIVE MONTHS? What's wrong with you?

Nudge: Miranda! You're alive! I thought you were in a coma, thanks to ICBN…

Me: Sorry, girls. I will make sure this story is done by the end of summer, I PROMISE!

Angel: Hi!

Nudge, Miranda, and Me: Go away, Angel.

Angel: Geez, after five months, SOMEONE'S a tad cranky…

Me: Anyways… after five months, HERE WE GO! YAY!

Miranda POV

The next afternoon, we touched down in a well-manicured lawn that stood before a two-story red brick house, somewhere out west. I noticed Fang, Nudge, and Angel watching me warily. And they should. Any second I could snap and go murderer on them.

Max, on the other hand, only stared at the house with anticipation. Unlike the rest of us, she had met both of her parents. Ironically enough, some guy named Jeb had raised the Flock, ditched them, turned against them, and joined up with them again. Max practically hated him. But Dr. Martinez and her daughter Ella, Max's half-sister, had cared for Max when she had been shot in the shoulder a long time ago. I could tell Max really loved the Martinezes. She walked up to the door and rang the bell.

The woman who opened the door instantly seemed kind, intelligent, capable, and understanding. Even though we were a motley crew of kids and teenagers who were still in the process of pulling our wings into our jackets, she didn't miss a beat as she grabbed Max into a hug and went around shaking everyone's hand. She came to me and looked at me with a question on her face. "Didn't I just see you…?"

Nudge stepped in. "Dr. Martinez, this is my twin sister, Miranda. Miranda's the newest member of the Flock."

"It's nice to meet you, ma'am," I said in my ultra-polite voice. I wanted to make the best impression on Dr. Martinez, since she would eventually be examining my brain for any mind-controlling chips from an evil international organization. Gosh, never new that sentence would summarize my life story…

"Miranda, welcome. All of you come inside!" I walked in and nearly collapsed. The scent of chocolate-chip cookies entered my nose and I practically blanked out. I hope I wasn't drooling. Dr. Martinez was still talking, "Since you called ahead, Max, I knew you'd want your favorite treat!"

She led us into the kitchen, where the largest, most delicious-looking platter of chocolate-chip cookies sat in a steaming, sweet heap. We dived at them, shoving each other away and pushing as many cookies as we could into our mouths. Animals.

A girl with Max's eyes but long dark hair came bounding down the stairs. "You're here!" she screamed and went around hugging, just like her mom. "Max! Fang! Gazzy! Angel! Nudge! Iggy! Nudge- wait a minute. Are there two of you?"

"I'm Miranda. Nudge's twin sister. You must be Ella."

"Nudge? You have a twin? So cool!" And I got a hug like everyone else.

Later, after we had finished stuffing our faces like rabid wolves, the Flock, Dr. Martinez, and Ella all sat down in the living room. "So, Miranda, I assume you are… like the rest?"

Like the rest? Assuming she meant the wings, air sacs, hollow bones, etc., I replied. "Yes, ma'am. Um, only for a few months though." I shuddered as I remembered the pain, torture, experimentation. All from that Dr. Polymer. Man, when we meet again, UGH!

"Mom, there's a problem. Something's up with Miranda." Max told Dr. Martinez everything that had happened since they met me.

"Well, that is quite a story. You've been through a lot, Miranda. I would be happy to run some tests-"She noticed the Flock's collective wince at the word "tests" and rephrased it. "I could take you down to my veterinary office and take some X-rays in the morning. We'll figure this out."

Just then the doorbell rang. Ella answered it, and called out, "Max, there's, uh, some people here that…"

A tall man with rectangular glasses and a smaller red-headed woman entered the home. I didn't know much about the Flock's history, but even I could feel the tension in the room. Conflict was imminent.

Max POV

I felt my vision tunnel in when I saw two of the many people on my "List". My list is not a good list, more like a list-of-people-to-beware-and-protect-the-Flock-from.

Jeb and Brigid.

I stood to my feet, eyes shooting daggers at them. "Well, well, well. If it isn't my traitor dad and his little fire-haired doctor friend. Some nerve coming back here, huh? Wonder why?" I stood there, sarcastically pondering the question. "I've got it! You want to mess with Miranda! Or maybe yet, kidnap us or even kill us? Good luck."

"Max, that's no way to greet a friend!" Brigid said in her annoyingly cheery voice and too-white smile. I watched her eyes as they took in the faces of everyone present. "Oh, have you found Nudge II?"

I glanced at Miranda as she joined my side. To my surprise, she shook Brigid's hand and explained who she was. Something wasn't right. Miranda's face twitched a bit at the touch of Brigid's hand, and Brigid seemed cold.

I turned my attention to Jeb. "What are you two doing here?"

"We just wanted to say hi, Max. How are you?"

"Really, do you always ask that question? For your information, I'm doing great, soaring the skies above America, going to Austin, battling ITEX's newest humanoid weapon giant, rescuing Nudge's long-lost twin sister, teaching her how to fly, and barely stopping her from strangling Angel, and traveling to my mom's house to try to figure out how to remove a possible mind-controlling computer chip in her brain. How's life in your world?" I was saturated in sarcasm.

He seemed stunned as he stared at Miranda. "You… you never were supposed to… Dr. Polymer must have done this." Jeb's voice was filled with unusual fury at this "Dr. Polymer" person.

Though dreading every moment of it, I informed Jeb and Brigid on all that happened to Miranda. I couldn't help but notice that Brigid was staring at Nudge's sister the whole time. "How interesting," she muttered every now and then. I could practically see the scientific gears churning in her red-haired head of hers. For good or bad, we would find out later.

Brigid POV

It was great to hear the results of the Authority Test firsthand; even though I knew the basics of the story, I had to play dumb. It was everything we hoped for, and more! There was one thing I had to make sure of. I asked the Flock, "Was there anything unusual that happened around the time of the 'episode', as you call it? Anything that seemed to trigger it or occurred through that time period?"

Naturally, Nudge was the first to blurt out, "Miranda's eyes weren't brown the whole time! They changed to this creepy blue color!" I could tell she was really worried about her sister, but ah well, everything was in the name of science.

Iggy, to my surprise, also spoke up, "I was flying, and I heard some radio waves traveling through the air to the building that the others were in. It stopped, I guess around the time Miranda's episode stopped." The blind one could pick up the radio waves? That was an issue that would need to be reported to Dr. Polymer tonight. They would need to further scramble the frequency in the future.

Jeb, a man who I do not particularly admire but am able to use to my purposes, seemed confused, as usual. "What I still do not understand is how easily Miranda was rescued from ITEX. And why they haven't sent anyone to find you yet." Uh oh. Old Batchelder was getting close to the truth. Too close for comfort.

I broke in, "Well, everything will be revealed in the morning. Dr. Martinez can X-ray Miranda's brain for anything strange and with any luck, questions will be answered." I couldn't help but notice Max's always suspicious glance now trained on me.

Miranda POV

This Brigid person was seriously giving me the willies. First she walks in, and I see Fang wince slightly at Max's outraged expression. Then she asks if I'm Nudge II, but I have a feeling she knew exactly who I was. The ultimate signal was when I shook her hand. Even though I wasn't really having an 'episode', I felt some sort of energy through touch. Probably left over from the last 'mind-game' I had with Angel. Brigid was bad, I just knew it. And I know she knew I knew. Man, that sentence is pretty confusing to write correctly. Anyways, Max and Brigid were sending off really tense vibes, and Brigid ended the conversation too quickly. Something was seriously up.

Dr. Martinez, being the kindly, caring, compassionate woman she is, allowed the entire Flock, Jeb, and Brigid to sleep in her huge house. That night, I lay awake on the couch, just pondering my really messed-up life, when I heard a door open and close. Then I felt the tap, tap, tap of feet on the hardwood flooring. I breathed deeper, acting asleep. The creeping person went out onto the porch after the coast appeared clear to him/her. Being a mutant-bird-kid actually came in handy, as I could just barely make out a whispered voice in the porch outside. I couldn't tell who it was; some people just sound identical with whispers. This person seemed to be communicating with someone over a phone.

"Everything is going great. There are just two concerns… Scramble the radio frequencies… Yes, even more than they are now… The other problem is physical… The irises… Yes… Yes, I understand… Absolutely… Over and out." I realized that I was leaning over the edge of the couch in the process of eavesdropping, and now I lost my balance. Oops. I hit the dark, hard panels with a THUMP, and the mysterious stranger spun around.

With speed previously unknown to me, I jackknifed to my feet (coolest thing ever) and assumed what was hopefully a threatening-looking fighting stance. "Who are you?" I called out in an attempt at a brave voice. Instead it came out like a mouse squeak.

"I am… about to make sure no one knows of this!" The voice… It was Brigid! Dangit, I knew that lady was dangerous.

I braced myself for hand-to-hand combat, like I had seen Max and Fang one afternoon when they were sparring. Unfortunately, lovely Brigid wasn't going to take any chances. Like the cartoon character Quick Draw McGraw, she pulled out a shining black pistol. For me, time slowed down. Who knows? In this world I had recently discovered, with winged children, mind-controlling chips, and gun-toting enemies, maybe time wasn't always constant. Slow-motion, Brigid aimed, cocked, and fired.

I saw the bullet inside the chamber of the pistol zoom out, lightning-fast even in slow time. I saw it travel. Ten feet away. Nine feet away. Eight feet, seven, six, five… There was no time to dive out of the way. It almost seemed like I was going to die, but two things happened, and both, saved my life that night.

First, I felt my eyes shiver, if that's a description that works. My brain… tightened I guess, and the crazy strength from a few days ago poured into my body once more. I barely registered the thought, Please don't be like last time, when the bullet stopped two and a half centimeters from the spot between my eyes. I kind of stared cross-eyed at it, partly because I was in shock and partly because I was in concentration to keep it from zooming into my skull.

The other thing that prevented my death was none other than my twin sister, Nudge. In the time it took for me to stare down that bullet, she had raced into the room. Somehow the pistol in Brigid's hand flew into Nudge's and then melted in her grasp. With the weapon taken care of, she leaped up into a spinning kick and a second later, Brigid was lying on the ground gasping for breath. Nudge walked over to me, wary of me because she probably saw my focused face and blue eyes. She reached up and pulled the bullet out of my vision (thank goodness I have a sister!), and with the threat gone, my worked-out brain shut down and I passed out.

A.N. So I hope you all liked it! I hope it was long enough for ya, seeing as you poor folks had to wait five months (FIVE MONTHS!) for me to update. So yeah, again, since this is summer, I will definitely finish this story.

Miranda: Am I getting superpowers like the rest of the Flock?

Me: We'll see.

Nudge: ZOMG! That would be, like, so totally cool if, like, she could rival Angel with mind abilities!

Angel: Sorry, Nudge. I am a one-of-a-kind.

Nudge: *muttering* Yeah, a one-of-a-kind monster in a little cherub's body.

Me: Nudge, that was a little mean.

Miranda: Well, what do you expect, ICBN? And are we ever going to figure why Angel scrambled my thoughts anyways? In fact, this whole situation is really her fault!

Nudge and Me: Yeah…

Angel: Hey, don't gang up on me! *runs away in terror*

Me: All will be revealed in time. So please R&R! Oh, and Kleenex will hopefully be back soon! Until next time!


	8. Discovering the unexpected

A.N. Hey guys, guess what? So I just finished watching the movie Inception, and it "kicked" me out of my writer's block! So just so you know, the inspiration for this chapter is from Inception. You'll see why.

Miranda: So wait. Last I checked, Nudge plucked a bullet out from in front of my forehead and I pass out? What kind of story is that, ICBN?

Me: You'll see. This is going to be like a filler chapter, because the real story continues in the next one with the new clues gained in this one!

Nudge: Wait. I'm already confused.

Angel: I'm not. Hey, maybe I could try Inception… Oh wait! I already do it, and I don't even have to do that whole sleeping-thing!

Miranda: For the last time, Angel. Get out of the Author's Note! And I'm going to find out what you were doing scrambling my brain in the first place back in Chapter 5. Got it?

Angel: We'll see about that.

Me: ANYWAYS! Here you go, everyone!

**Chapter 8: Discovering the unexpected**

Miranda POV

As soon as Nudge pulled the bullet away from my head, my brain released the extra pressure that was protecting my forehead from the bullet. I was still in episode mode, my eyes no doubt blazing blue. I watched as my body collapsed on the floor, then the scene changed.

I was back in my room, the day, the hour that I was first kidnapped by the strange masked man. I was watching myself as I entered my house. I grabbed the potato chips, flopped on the couch. I saw what my past self hadn't noticed at the time: a man in black, hidden behind the couch. I saw the hypodermic syringe in a small box attached to his belt, next to a small badge.

I was going to stop him from kidnapping my past self, but something stopped me. I was probably dreaming, somehow. I could get a good look at his badge.

ITEX: Institute for Technology, Engineering, and Experimentation

Seattle, WA

As soon as I got that glimpse, the scene changed again.

This time I was in the room where I got those injections by that Dr. Polymer. After the last one went into my brain (I winced at that part), Dr. Polymer ordered the guards, "Take her to the Recovery Cell 9832."

I followed my past self as I was dragged down the hallway outside of the room. They pulled me into the elevator at the end of the hall and I jumped in with them. They pressed number 9. The elevator dropped, and I felt my stomach jump to my throat like it always does on elevators.

We exited it, and went down the new hallway, passing seven corridors and stopping at the eighth. Right turn, and we went to room 32. Room 9832. I saw the guards shove my past self into the cell and the doors closed.

Another scene change. This time, I couldn't see my past self. I was in a room with two women: Dr. Polymer and that Brigid lady. One had turned me into a bird-kid and the other had tried to shoot me in the head. I wanted to attack them, but another invisible force field protected them. I could only watch.

"I understand you have the information my firm requires?" Brigid spoke in a cold, businesslike tone.

"Right here," replied Dr. Polymer. "And in return, you are willing to give us information on the Subjects." They handed each other files and looked them over. I scooted around Dr. Polymer's desk and peered over her shoulder to look at the files. It was opened to a page titled: Authority Test.

AUTHORITY TEST: CONFIDENTIAL

SUBJECT 1 (PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS INITIAL SUBJECT)

NAME: Maximum Ride

STRENGTHS: Leadership, Intelligence, Strength, Speed, Mixed Martial Arts, Flight, Speed in Flight, Aforementioned Voice, Underwater Breathing

WEAKNESSES: Affection towards SUBJECT 2, Affection towards ALL SUBJECTS, Threat in Leadership from SUBJECT 6

I scanned the names following them. The SUBJECT 2 was Fang, of course. Then Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, Angel (who had a ton of strengths), then some kid named Dylan.

And then there was me.

SUBJECT 8- ***AUTHORITY TEST***

NAME: Miranda

STRENGTHS: Natural Intelligence, Natural Creativity, Recovery from AUTHORITY TEST, Flight, Exterior Telekinesis, Interior Mind Telekinesis, Exterior Force Shield, Interior Mind Shield, Strength, Speed

WEAKNESSES: Emotional, Affection towards SUBJECT 4, Possible Affection towards SUBJECT 3, AUTHORITY TEST leaves weakened, Affection towards SUBJECT 4 and 8's PREVIOUS RELATIVES

NOTE: AUTHORITY TEST 1 is a success, but close examination show SUBJECT 8's possible ability to remain fully aware during upcoming AUTHORITY TESTS, and may be able to control herself but keep her gained abilities.

I could control myself during the episodes? I felt the scene fading, and I felt myself falling. Suddenly, I was on a couch, sitting up and gasping. I was awake, and what I had seen was… incredible.

Nudge POV

I was going downstairs to get a cup of milk and maybe another one of Dr. Martinez's cookies for a midnight snack. Suddenly, I hear a loud THUMP in the living room. I peer around the corner, hearing a voice that sounded like Brigid's hiss, "I am about to make sure no one knows of this!" Then to my horror, she shot my twin.

Twelve years of training under the Maximum Ride Survival Academy kicked into gear. Number One: Aquire All Weapons. I used my magnetic ability to attract Brigid's gun to my hand. Number Two: Eradicate All Weapons. Once in my hand, I melted the metal (new development of my ability) and it dripped onto the floor. Number Three: Fight Any Attackers And Put Them Out Of Play. I leaped into a roundhouse kick into Brigid's gut and she fell over, gasping for air. Number Four: Protect All Flock Members And Attend To The Wounded. This was almost impossible to do. Who would want to look at their dead twin? But I turned to look at Miranda.

To my delight and surprise, the bullet had not even touched her. It just hovered. But to my horror, her eyes were blue. It must be her new abilities that came with the episodes, like this one. She just stared cross-eyed at the spinning bullet an inch from her skull.

I could see Max watching as I walked cautiously toward Miranda, aware of the strength and intensity that she had when she decided to attack someone. But all her attention was on the bullet. I reached up, and touched the bullet, grabbed it and pulled it out of her blue vision line. I tossed it away. Miranda's eyes flickered, and then she collapsed onto the floor.

Max and I wordlessly carried her over to a couch. I lifted her eyelid, but her eyes were swirling blue and brown. Still in her episode. I turned to Max, and she said with malice, "I knew Brigid was evil." We tied up the still-gasping Brigid and pushed her against the wall. By now, everyone was downstairs in the living room. The sound of the gunshot must've woken them up.

Miranda just lay there. I wonder what happened that made Brigid want to kill my sister. I would have asked Brigid, but Max had gagged her, saying that we should listen to Miranda first, when she woke up.

We waited for about five minutes, and then Miranda bolted up, wide awake. She was breathing hard, her widened eyes back to their natural brown color. "It's okay, just lie down again." I told her soothingly, but she shook her head and swung her feet around so she faced the rest of us.

Max asked the question we were all wondering, "What happened, Miranda?"

She stared at her. "I was just lying awake, and then I heard someone out on porch talking to someone with a device, maybe a cell phone, maybe not. It turned out to be Brigid. When she saw that I had heard her, she just drew her gun and shot. I had another episode, and the bullet stopped just before it hit my head. Then Nudge came in, and she took care of the gun and Brigid, then pulled the bullet away from me. Then I collapsed."

Gazzy leaned in, "What did Brigid say?"

Miranda closed her eyes, visibly straining to remember. "She said, 'Everything is going great. There are just two concerns… Scramble the radio frequencies… Yes, even more than they are now… The other problem is physical… The irises… Yes… Yes, I understand… Absolutely… Over and out.'" We all sat back and put together what that meant.

So, Brigid was working for ITEX. The radio frequencies probably were the ones Iggy had heard while he was flying that day. The irises were the colorful part of the eye, I learned that when I went to the Day and Night school while Max and the others were at the Hawaiian military base. So if the irises were the physical concern, Brigid was probably referring to the way Miranda's eyes turned blue when she was in an episode. That meant that Brigid and whoever in ITEX she was working with didn't want us to know when Miranda was in an episode, but we did know by the color of her eyes. So Brigid knew a lot of things.

The others seemed to arrive at the conclusion at the same time as us, because we all glared at Brigid at the same time. Jeb stood and walked over to the woman that was bound and gagged against the wall. "I'm very disappointed, Brigid. I thought you were trustworthy. But you weren't." He pulled away her gag and stood back.

Max stalked over, tension filling the room. "You!" she spat. "I would have a lot to say to you, because somehow I always knew you were evil. But those words are not appropriate around the younger flock members, Ella and my mom. But I'm going to give you ten seconds to tell us everything you know about Miranda's episodes, or you're going to find yourself falling over the edge of the Grand Canyon with none of us winged kids to catch you!"

Dang, Max is really scary when a Flock member is attacked. Brigid looked at us, then grinned saying, "Do what you like, Max. I have instructions not to tell you anything. Oh, and if you kill me, you'll still be at a dead end."

Max looked ready to explode, but Miranda's voice piped up. "Wait. When I was unconscious, I went places."

"What kind of places, Miranda?" I asked her.

"Past places. I went to my house, back when I was still human. I saw the guy who kidnapped me, and I saw his badge, and it said, 'ITEX: Institute for Technology, Engineering, and Experimentation, Seattle, Washington.'"

"Washington? This ITEX you were at is in Washington? Max, we've never been to Washington!" I was babbling, as I always do when I'm surprised.

Max looked at Miranda curiously, "What else did you see?"

"I saw the moment when I got the shots that made me a bird-kid." Miranda sounded miserable. "And then I saw them take me to Room 9832. Ninth floor, Eighth Corridor, Thirty-Second Room."

"And then what?" Fang mumbled in a Fang way.

"I was in a room with Dr. Polymer, the lady who made me a bird-kid, and Brigid. They were having some sort of meeting, where they exchanged some papers in folders. I looked at Dr. Polymer's papers. It had all of us on the pages, our strengths and weaknesses. It said… it said I could control myself but still keep my abilities when I'm in my episodes."

There was silence in the room. Iggy broke the silence, "Well. I guess we're not at a dead end after all, eh Brigid?"

Max smirked at the shocked Brigid. "No, Iggy, we are not. You know what this means, guys? We're going to Seattle!"

A.N. So what did you think? Just so you know, I am writing three other stories than this one, so if you want to find out what happens when the Flock hits Seattle, you're gonna have to review.

Miranda: ICBN, I have to say. That was the weirdest dream I have ever had.

Me: Well, it was supposed to be.

Nudge: So I can melt metal with my hands? Cool!

Me: So remember…

All: REVIEW!

Miranda: Really. Review before poor ICBN goes nuts. ;)


	9. The law of theft

A.N. I just wanted to say that this chapter is dedicated to the people who reviewed Thank you to Xxx, whoever you are, my good friend Kleenex, and FangNotFnick, for taking the time out of your lives to encourage me! So yeah, this goes out to you three! :) I also did not forget about you, Betakeys, from back in January! Look for your character here! ;)

Miranda: ICBN, wait a second. First I get turned into a mutant bird-kid, then I get my brain hijacked and attack a seven-year-old girl, and then some old enemies of the Flock show up and the next thing I know I'm staring down a bullet, and then I pass out and have some dreams that tell me to go to Seattle to face down the people who turned me into a mutant in the first place? Do you not like me or something? Why couldn't this be one of the FanFics where the Flock starts a band and gets rich and famous? That would be much nicer and WAY less stressful, you know.

Me: Wow. You talk as much as Nudge does. Anyways, yeah I think those start-a-band FanFics are overdone. This is more interesting, right? I do like you, Miranda, it's just that your story happens to be very… eventful.

Nudge: Eventful? Not the word I would use…

Me: ANYWAYS! On with the story…

**Chapter 9: The Law of Theft**

Max POV

The next morning, my mom took us all to her vet practice and set Miranda up for an X-ray. Unlike how the rest of us would have acted, she was perfectly fine doing it. "I broke my leg years ago," she informed Dr. Martinez, "so I know the drill."

A while later, the X-rays came back. We looked at them, confused and frustrated and shocked. There was no chip in Miranda's brain. Nothing. "Well," Gazzy mumbled. "This is a problem."

That was the understatement of the year. If Miranda didn't have a chip, then how could we stop her episodes? For all we knew, the episodes could be a part of her DNA, and thus, permanent. I looked at the girl who looked exactly like Nudge, her eyes widened and concerned. "Hey," I nudged her gently. She looked up at me, worry clearly written all over her face. "We'll figure it out. Don't worry." She nodded and smiled.

A few hours later we loaded our backpacks and took off. Brigid, the evil red-headed traitor, was locked up in jail. We would have left her with my mom and Ella, but we didn't want ITEX beating up my family to break her out. So the local law enforcement would be in charge of the young Dr. Dwyer's personal cell. Meanwhile, we were headed up north, to Washington. "Ready, everyone?" I yelled.

"Ready!" And we took off to the west.

At the end of the day, we had reached a large city in northern California. A sign said SAN FRANCISCO. As the sun started to set, I saw the younger kids, especially Miranda, slowing down and dropping in altitude slightly. I swooped down to their level and yelled out in the wind, "How are you doing?"

"Okay," they muttered half-heartedly. Miranda's wings seemed to struggle the most. I remembered that this was the longest distance Miranda had flown non-stop.

"You know what? I think we should stop for the night. Tomorrow we can storm Seattle fully rested." The kids cheered, and we descended to the city below.

We scouted the area, but found that there were no hotels, motels, inns, lodges, or any sleeping areas with enough room for seven sleepy mutant bird-kids. Eventually we settled with a large warehouse, strangely empty of any crates or bins. It smelled of dust and grime and I could practically feel the spiders living inside. Not the best place we've lived in, but still, not the worst.

We cautiously tiptoed inside, the door clicking softly behind us. "Let's search for a light switch." Everyone, even Iggy who didn't need the light, spread out across the warehouse floor and felt the walls. Suddenly, I tripped over something and felt something to my right. I instinctively punched out in that direction, the pitch black darkness making it impossible to see what I was hitting. I felt something fuzzy, soft and solid. A grunt sounded next to me and whatever it was disappeared out into the void.

Echoing around the room were the gasps and cries of my Flock mates as they were attacked, one by one. Enough was enough. I reached for my ultra-deep pocket in my cargo pants to find my emergency flashlight. Except, my pocket was empty. In fact, every pocket was empty! Oh no…

I raced out into the darkness to help my family. Someone else was definitely here.

Miranda POV

I was brushing my hands along the wall, feeling for anything to ease the stark black of the room. Suddenly, I was shoved from behind. I came up to my feet to look around. "Hey! Who shoved me?" No one replied. I had dropped my backpack and reached down to grab it, but felt nothing but air. Hm… I could've sworn it was right there… I heard loud yells farther out in the building and ran in that direction. It was Iggy, and it sounded like he was fighting something. Because of his blindness, he had no problem with the dark of the room, and soon he grunted, "Gotcha!"

Then a bright light flooded the warehouse from a bulb the ceiling. The lights began to flicker on down the length of the building, and I followed the path. I noticed Gazzy walking away from the light switch on the wall opposite from me. Iggy was on the floor, holding something down. As soon as the lights landed on him and the… thing under him, the thing squirmed out of his arms, leaped up high and disappeared in the rafters above our heads, fast as lightning. Iggy looked shocked.

The Flock gathered below the area where he disappeared, where the shadows concealed the spaces between the large pipes and bars. "What was that?" I asked Iggy.

He looked frustrated. "I… I'm not sure. It was… soft, like a cat, but WAY too big to be a cat. Almost like a fluffy Eraser." He shivered. We all craned our necks back, staring up at the shadowed rafters.

Max called out, speaking slowly, "Hey! Can. You. Understand. Me?"

Two eyes appeared, almost glowing in the dim lighting. "Yeah." It sounded like a teenage boy.

Max said, "Can. You. Come. Down. Here. Please?"

"Sure," it replied. "And you don't have to talk so painfully slow. I'm not an idiot." Max seemed startled, but regained her composure.

Just as suddenly as it had disappeared, the thing dropped to the floor, landing on all fours, like an animal. It didn't make a single sound, so Iggy was still staring at the ceiling, waiting for it to come down. The thing stood to its feet and cleared its throat.

The thing was, in fact, a boy. Not very tall, about mine and Nudge's height, with a very lean, athletic build. He had creamy tannish skin, like Fang's but lighter. His hair was black and spiky, and he had a lot of it, especially on the top of his head. He had these startling green eyes, like the color of green neon, that were narrowed as he watched us warily. He wore all black clothes, like Fang, except this guy actually had some style. No offense, Fang.

The strange boy sighed, and mumbled, "Guess I'm caught, aren't I?"

Max walked over to him and got in his face. "Who are you, and what did you do with our stuff?" she barked at him in a steely voice. I watched in fascination as his spiky hair got even thicker and wilder and his eyes widened to the size of saucers in fear.

He gulped, "Why should I tell you anything?" Man, this kid was pretty brave to say that to Maximum Ride. Or really dumb.

Max stood back and nodded at Fang, who instantly grabbed the guy in a choking headlock. "Okay! Okay! Let me go!" Fang shoved him forward, and the guy glared at him with a look I have never seen before on… on a human's face. I think he even might have hissed.

He declared, "Fine. Lex Furtum, at your service," he sneered at us, bowing at the waist mockingly. Something clicked in my brain.

"Wait! Lex Furtum? Isn't that Latin?"

"Yeah. It is," he looked at me, surprised. Actually, the rest of them were staring at me too, and I remember Nudge telling me how they had very, VERY limited school experience.

"I took Latin in school. Lex Furtum. That's… the law of theft, isn't it?" (A.N. Google Translate, folks. I take Chinese, not Latin!)

"Correct. Fitting, isn't it?" he smirked with a cocky grin.

"Just give us our stuff, Lex. Then I'll decide if I want to beat you up." Max was staring holes at him, and I hoped she wouldn't be too harsh. Come to think of it, she looked kind of impressed at Lex's stealth. None of us had seen or heard him coming.

"Coming right up," Lex replied, and leaped up once more. Our backpacks and various items rained to the floor, including a small stuffed bear with a halo that Angel snatched up and stuffed in her backpack. Lex returned to the floor and started to back away. "Okay, you got your stuff, no harm no foul, so I'm just gonna head out of here, okay?"

"Not so fast. I want to know how you were able to sneak up on us like that, and how you can jump up in the air that high." Max advanced towards him with every other word.

He looked at Max incredulously. "Honestly? Geez, you really think I'm gonna tell you all my secrets? You wouldn't believe me, anyways."

Max was losing patience. "Try me."

Lex huffed, and blurted, "I'm part cat." He chuckled like it was a joke. Max didn't think it was so funny.

"I thought so," she answered, "What are you, 4.5%?"

Lex's eyes nearly burst out of his head, and he sank to the floor. "H-how… how did you know?"

I saw Max's face soften, and she said softly, "I think we are very much alike, Lex Furtum." She nodded at us, and as one, we unfolded our wings and spread them wide.

Lex looked as if he was about to faint. "Y-you're… I knew it… I knew I wasn't… I knew I wasn't alone!" He grinned from ear to ear, looking so relieved I was afraid he was going to cry.

Obviously at ease with the fact that he was with fellow mutants, Lex began to show his outwardly animal features. From his thick, pointy black hair appeared a pair of black, furry, triangular ears. And behind him, a two-and-a-half foot black tail coiled. Without a doubt, Lex Furtum was a feline-human recombinant hybrid. And I was willing to bet he had an awesome story to tell.

Max POV

Lex, the Flock and I were sitting around a large lantern in the center of the empty warehouse. Apparently, Lex hadn't eaten for a few days, so we happily shared our food. After a few minutes of collective munching, we all sat back and looked at Lex expectantly, all thinking the same question. I was the one who spoke it aloud, "So, Lex, why don't you tell us about yourself?"

He nodded, and said, "Well, how do I start… Do you guys know about the Erasers?"

"Yeah," we all said simultaneously. Erasers, who could forget?

"So, ITEX had created these Erasers, but found out that they were very hard to control and weren't always successful, as you probably already know. They decided to try to create a replacement for the Erasers. Cats. They put together the very first cat-human hybrid." He took a breath, "That's me. I'm actually the only one of my kind."

I looked at Fang, and we exchanged facial expressions. This kid was created to replace the Erasers? He must be a very, VERY good fighter…

Lex continued, "Unlike dogs, cats are very agile, they're smarter, they're more flexible, better fighters, the works. When I was four, the whitecoats stuck me in a room with three Erasers, and I had to defeat them."

"Did you?" asked Gazzy.

"Yep," Lex grinned proudly. "The Erasers didn't last one minute. But I did get some nasty wounds." Lex pulled up the sleeve on his jacket to show us these awful long, red scars. "Anyways, the whitecoats were really impressed and decided that they wanted to make more of me. Unfortunately for them, all of the notes, the files, the records that were related to me had suddenly disappeared off the face of the Earth. I later learned out who did it. There was this one whitecoat who was different from the rest. He wasn't as rough and seemed to actually care how I felt from being nearly sliced to pieces every day.

"This guy, he broke me out of that place when I was seven, and took me to San Francisco. He stayed with me for almost a year, teaching me street smarts, how to read, fighting skills, tricks and stuff like that. Then he left. I never saw him again."

"What was his name?" I asked him.

"Jeb Batchelder." There was silence in the room. Lex noticed and continued on, "As Jeb and I were running away from that ITEX facility, I vowed to one day take an army, storm the place, and destroy it. I've lived in the greater San Fran area ever since. And, um, sorry about trying to rip you guys off. I'm a pickpocket. It's how I live."

"No problem, Lex," I muttered. We all just sat there, digesting Lex's life story. And the sandwiches we had scarfed down for dinner.

Miranda piped up, "Lex, you said that you wanted to get vengeance on that ITEX facility. Where was it, exactly?"

Lex's eyebrows furrowed in remembrance, "It was… Seattle? Seattle, Washington."

The Flock's eyes widened. Miranda said, "Really? That's a crazy coincidence. See, we're heading there. We need to get the people there to fix a problem that… one of us has. Would you like to come with us? We get your stealth skills and you get your army to attack the place."

We all stared at Miranda. "That's… actually a good idea." Miranda beamed. Now we all looked at Lex.

He thought it over for a while, and then smirked a coy, cat-like smile. "Count me in."

A.N. So what did you think? Lex Furtum is my third OC ever! (Miranda and Dr. Polymer were the first and second) I have decided to bring him into the A.N.s from now on!

Lex: *looks around* Where am I? And why am I stuck with a bunch of girls? *hisses like a cat*

Miranda: What's the matter, Lex? Think we have cooties?

Lex: Um, no…

Nudge: LIAR!

Lex: Okay! Yes! I think girls have cooties! ICBN, don't leave me here with these crazy people!

Me: No, Lex, I think you're going to love it here. Nudge, grab the bottle of cooties. Lex looks thirsty…

Lex: NOOOOOOO!


	10. Donut demolition

A.N. Hey, readers! Thanks for coming along this far on a story that is not as consistently updated as it should be. I would especially like to thank FangNotFnick, Betakeys, and Mo for reviewing! You make me squeal with delight!

Lex: *snarls* As soon as this story is done, I am out of here.

Me: Not so fast! There is a possibility for a sequel, possibly a prequel! ;)

Lex: You can't keep me here! Torture is wrong!

Miranda: Au contraire, my feline friend. You see, ICBN is the ruler of this story's universe.

Nudge: So you're going to have to make an appeal to get her to let you free!

Miranda, Nudge, and Me: MWAHAHAHAHAHA!

Lex: *whimpers pathetically, gulps* Well, here's the newest chapter…

**CHAPTER 10: Donut demolition**

Nudge POV

The next morning, the Flock and Lex set out in this grand city called San Francisco. It was both adorable and fascinating at the same time! The majestic Golden Gate Bridge, the cute little trolley things, it was one of the best cities in a long time.

Of course, having Lex among the ranks now, we made it through the city much faster than would be expected for tourists. He had tons of connections from his years living here. We finally stopped in an alley. Lex walked up to a brick wall that didn't seem too special, but when he pulled on a small metal handle, a section of the wall curved away; it was a hidden door.

I stared at Lex. He was… intriguing. There was a calm tenacity to him, mysterious, powerful. Plus, he's pretty cute. Stop it, Nudge. You don't even know the guy. Anyways.

Lex led us into a dimly-lit storage room. What did the room store, you may ask? Well…

Gazzy POV

DONUTS! Thousands and thousands of delicious donuts! Mini donuts, huge donuts, chocolate donuts, powdered donuts, classic glazed donuts, sprinkled donuts, even jelly-filled donuts! I squealed like a little girl, and Max had to hold me back from attacking the hoard of sweet treats. (Of course, there were also lame things like cookies and cupcakes and stuff. But _nothing_ compares to donuts!)

Lex led us through another door, away from my precious donuts. This one was like a break room for employees. There was a small window in yet ANOTHER door, and we all crammed our heads together to watch. There was a lady at a counter of what seemed like a small parlor. She looked to be around her late-thirties with blondish-brownish hair like Max's. As a customer came in, she said in a super-cheerful voice, "Welcome to San Fran Sweeties! (A.N. I looked it up, and it turns out that there is a place called Sweeties in San Francisco. This is completely made up, so no offense to anyone out in the Bay Area! ;) ) How may I help you?" I watched in fascination as the woman created custom-made donuts. So that's how it works… I was drooling at the different kinds of desserts and sweets, ignoring Angel's signature "ewww" face.

After the rest of the customers were happily munching on their fresh donuts (I was super jealous of them), the lady came into the break room. She gasped when she saw all of us random kids sitting there, but grinned and hugged Lex. "Hey kiddo!" she said, ruffling his hair.

Then she looked at the rest of us with interest. "Hi. I'm Sweetie Francesca."

I opened my mouth to comment, but she cut in, "Yes, yes, it's very ironic, my shop is San Fran Sweeties and I'm Sweetie Francesca. I've heard it all before." Her eyes and smile looked very, very familiar.

Max stepped forward. "I'm Max, this is Nick, Jeff, Tiffany, Zephyr, Angel and… Krystal." Max glanced at Miranda with a question on her face and Miranda subtly nodded; the fake name worked for her.

Lex explained to the Flock, "When Jeb brought me to San Francisco, he left me with one of the few people he could trust to keep my secret. Sweetie practically raised me, until I could leave on my own." Although his tone was light and happy, Lex's eyes pleaded us not to say anything that would reveal his pickpocketing. I'm guessing he wouldn't want Sweetie to know about his life as a sneaky thief. We all nodded.

Max was suspicious, though, as soon as the word 'Jeb' left Lex's mouth. "How do you know Jeb?" she questioned Sweetie.

"Why, I'm his sister," Sweetie replied.

Woah. Did _not_ see that coming. The Flock stood there, slack-jawed and eyes as big as an extra-large powdered donut. Now the resemblances were showing up. The hair, the eyes, even the facial expressions… But if Sweetie was Jeb's sister, then…

Max snarled, "You're my aunt?" I snickered. Max had a real, true, no-doubt Aunt Sweetie. Oh, Iggy and I had thought the day would never come.

Now it was Sweetie's turn to look very confused. "My brother never told me he had a daughter…" Not to mention a son, Ari, who was killed twice after being turned into a mutant dog man. Of course, we didn't actually say that aloud… most of us. But Sweetie couldn't hear us!

Cue Iggy's clever comment (whispered): "Dang, Max. You're family tree's getting larger by the second. You've got a dad you hate and a mom you love, a half-brother and half-sister, and now an Aunt Sweetie who has a wonderful donut parlor in San Fran. And that's not even counting your two percent of _you-know-what_…"

Angel whispered back, "Iggy, you are really, really insensitive."

He shrugged, "Meh, it's part of my charm."

Fang snorted. "What charm?"

While the Flock continued this banter, Lex was explaining our situation to Sweetie. She nodded understandingly, and I wondered how many other mutants Lex had brought to meet his guardian.

After a few minutes, the talking was interrupted by the ding-ding of the service bell on Sweetie's counter outside the room. "Oops! Gotta run. I'll talk to you kids later. Oh, and help yourselves to the donuts in the back room while I'm gone!"

I seriously loved this woman. In a free-donuts kind of way.

Max POV

Gazzy was stuffing his face with as many donuts as possible. He even found a large bag and began dumping whole bins of powdered donut holes in it. Angel, Miranda, and Nudge were staring at his piggishness with disgust, but I was listening to the conversation Sweetie was having with a customer. Though she still kept up her cheery sales-woman voice, I could detect a faint nervous waver.

"Welcome to San Fran Sweeties. How may I help you?"

"I was told your store had something that I have wanted for quite a while." It was a man, with one of those deep, threatening voices that scream evil.

"Well, our sprinkled jelly donuts are rated as one of the best in the Bay Area. Would you like a free sample?"

"No. I am thinking of something far more… unique." The way he said 'unique' rang the whole Flock's DANGER alarms. We all crammed against the door, listening to the conversation/confrontation taking place in the shop.

"Ah. I see. Well…" I could tell Sweetie was stalling for time, "I am able to create special made-to-order cookie cakes. They are quite unique, if I do say so myse—" Sweetie suddenly stopped. I subtly pried the door open and peeked around the opening to see what was happening.

The man was dressed in business-suit black with a cruel face that seemed vaguely familiar. I know… it was another GH! A Granite Humanoid, like the one we defeated in Austin. Except this one seemed a little more human. He had a beefy hand wrapped around Sweetie arm, pinning it to the table. The other hand was pointing a shining black pistol in Sweetie's face. I heard Lex tense up, barely stopping himself from leaping into the parlor to jump this thug. I'll call him Thug from now on.

Behind Thug, the rest of the customers that were previously munching on donuts now were screaming. Thug turned around, still pinning Sweetie's arm to the counter. "Everyone! Scram!" he yelled, pointing his gun at the innocents. There was a stampede of running, screeching people. In walked two more thug-like dudes. I'll call them Goon and Hoodlum.

By this point, we were all fearing for Sweetie's life. Of course, if we suddenly jumped out from the shadows, who knows what Thug might have done? Surprisingly, though, Sweetie stood up tall and asked, "Is this a robbery? Because I'm sorry to say that most customers only pay with credit—"

"Shut it!" Thug bellowed. "Where are the mutants?" Everyone in the back room was tense now.

"Mutants? Okay, I know our pastries are a little less-than-stellar, but _mutant_ is going a bit far, don't you think?"

"She sounds like you, Max!" Angel whispered excitedly. And I had to admit, Sweetie was using her wit to buy herself—and us—some time. Much like I do in similar situations.

"Listen. There's no point in hiding them, because either you tell us where they are, or we search this shop until we find them. Your choice, lady."

And bam. I had a plan. "Everyone," I whispered. "Those guys are going to come in here eventually. We need an escape plan."

"I have one!" Gazzy grinned, and we huddled to listen to his plot. It just might work…

Lex POV

I released my tail to its full length and reached out with it like a rope towards Sweetie. Sweetie was like my big sister, and no way some rock dude was going to hurt her at all. I wrapped my tail around Sweetie and yanked her away into the back room, faster than the "Granite Humanoid" guy could react. Fortunately, she didn't make noise, those she was as shocked as the dude that had her at gunpoint a second ago.

While we still had the element of surprise, I dragged Sweetie into the donut room. Behind me I could hear the angry roars of the three rock men as they started to follow us.

"Almost done, Gazzy?" Max asked anxiously.

"Just a few more touches… there!" The Flock, Sweetie, and I ran out to the alley beyond the donut room. We retreated several feet, and Gazzy pulled out a small remote with a large red button on it, his finger poised to press it. "Wait for it… wait for it…"

Then we heard the men trip over the boxes of donuts we had arranged in the floor of the donut room. They fell noisily, and Max yelled, "Now Gazzy!"

Gazzy gleefully pressed the button, and through the open passageway door to the donut room, we watched the scene. (Kids, don't try this at home.) Simultaneously, all three men had tons of glazed donuts dumped on them, momentarily trapping them on the floor. Then, the jelly donuts spontaneously combusted, somehow lighting the powdered donuts on fire. The jelly that sprayed from the jelly donuts managed to ignite from the flaming powdered donuts onto the rock men. Finally, the extra-large chocolate donuts flashed, and all of the shelves tilted over, pinning the three dudes down for good.

We all stood there in silence, and Iggy whistled, "I don't know how it looked, but the wreckage smelled and sounded amazing. Awesome work, Gaz!" And they slapped fives.

Sweetie was looking at the burning remains of the donuts for her shop. Max walked up, looking sorry as she said, "Sorry about the destruction, Sweetie…"

But to everyone's surprise, Sweetie turned and hugged Max. "Thank you so much! I've been waiting to get rid of those donuts! Those are the expired ones from last year that I couldn't sell! I used to give them out to little kids in the street who looked hungry, but after a while, they stopped taking them. I would have thrown them out, but I'm just not a waster. You did me a favor!"

Gazzy then proceeded to puke up at least thirty assorted donuts in the gutter. Not a pretty sight, let me tell you…

A.N. Wow. The word "donut" was mentioned thirty-six times in this chapter!

Miranda: Make that thirty-seven, ICBN.

Me: So how did you guys like it? Please review! Oh, and Sweetie is my fourth OC! Who's your favorite OC?

Nudge: I like Miranda best!

Lex: No fair! You're biased!

Miranda: So? *smirks smugly*

Me: Everyone! Stop bugging me! *sighs* Oh, and if you haven't heard, I am taking a vote for my next story! Which one should I do next?

1. Nudge's boarding school days- What really happened in MAX when Nudge went to school? (Crossover with Gallagher Girls series)

2. The Flock's life in the School- How they met, how Jeb got them out, and what Ari was like as a little boy?

3. Hidden Talents- The many known and unknown talents that the Flock members have, and tales where they come in handy?

4. What if… - Using different situations in JP's books, what would happen if things ended up differently?

So vote and R&R, and I will reward you with a virtual San Fran Sweeties donut (freshly made by Sweetie)! ;)


	11. Sweetie's place

A.N. Hey folks! Thanks for bearing with me as I get through this crazy thing called high school. Since y'all are so patient, I am treating you to a new chapter today!

**CHAPTER 11: Sweetie's Place**

Max POV

After the… interesting events at the donut parlor, Sweetie brought us home with her. She lived in a small house on a hill that had a wonderful view of the Bay. Somehow we managed to fit all nine of us into her living room, and Sweetie looked at us sadly. "You're all experiments, aren't you?"

I glanced at Lex. He nodded with an unspoken statement that we could be open with Sweetie. I answered her, "Yes, we're avian-human hybrids."

"So, I expect you must have…"

"Wings."

"Right. Wings."

Awkward silence, and then I asked a question that had been hammering at my mind for a while. "Sweetie, if you're Jeb's sister, how come your name isn't Batchelder, too? Are you married?"

She smiled. "Yes. My husband and I have been married for almost five years now."

"I would love to meet him," I commented politely. Even though chances were good I would never get the chance to see him.

Pain hit Sweetie's kind face. "I'm afraid that he's not around. He's been fighting in the war in the Middle East for almost a year now." The Flock stared at each other with shock on our faces. For some reason, when you're busy fighting evil international corporations and diabolical megalomaniacs on a daily basis, you tend to forget that there are other non-mutant battles happening constantly all over the world.

Lex walked over to his guardian and wrapped his arm around her shoulders comfortingly. "He's stationed in Afghanistan for another six months. And then he'll come back home." All of us could tell that Sweetie and Lex deeply cared for this man.

Miranda inquired, "How much do you know about a company called ITEX?" I have to say, she's much better about getting to the point than Nudge is.

Sweetie's face hardened into a determined expression that closely resembled my own. "Well, I know more about it than most people do. I know that some of their deals are shady, but no one can get the right kind of evidence on them. I know that ever since the corporation had a fall a few months ago, one of their current main headquarters is located up in Seattle, where Lex came from. Which, now that I think about it, you kids probably had something to do with their small collapse. Most of all, I know for a fact that their experimentation research has crossed several ethical boundaries. Last I heard from Jeb, he was working in that department."

"Do you approve of his job?" Nudge questioned.

"To be honest? No. But Jeb's his own person now. I can't tattle to Mommy or Daddy like I used to when we were little. He's got to live up to his own actions. Do you know if he still works for ITEX nowadays?" Sweetie looked concerned.

"I don't think so, but there's no telling what goes on with Jeb when you're not watching." Everyone in the room could detect my feelings towards my biological father.

Sweetie noticed this, too, but remarked, "Everyone at some time in their lives does something that they regret, and Jeb is no exception. But that one evening in October, years ago, when he rang my doorbell and my husband and I saw him standing on our doorstep, with Lex's little hand in his… Moments like that remind me that Jeb has one of the softest hearts I know." She smiled to herself, and asked us, "Did Jeb send you to me? Or are you traveling for another reason?"

Right. Straight to business. "Let's just say that one of us has a little… issue, and we need to clear it up with ITEX as soon as possible. We were heading north, to Seattle, ran into Lex, and met you. He said you would be able to help us." 

At this, Sweetie eyes lit up in determination. "I see." She stood from her seat on the couch and walked out of the room, calling back, "Follow me, Max."

She led me to a small office in the attic. When she flicked a switch, aged yellow light flooded the wooden paneled flooring and ceiling. All along the walls were articles, photographs, website printouts, copied pages from books, handwritten notes, and sticky notes galore. As Sweetie walked over to her desk, I caught a glimpse of a newspaper clipping:

**ITEX CLAIMS HUMAN EXPERIMENTATION IS "THE FUTURE OF MANKIND"**

SEATTLE, WA - This afternoon in a press conference, the Institute for Technology, Engineering, and Experimentation, or ITEX, declared that their startling advances in genetics, were "the gateway to the future of mankind, a path on the way to a world of healthy, intelligent, peaceful people, each gifted in areas previously only known to animals," according to Dr. Gwen Polymer, the leading researcher of the Department of Experimentation at ITEX.

ITEX has dealt with several legal investigations throughout their eighty-five year history, although the frequency of these investigations has increased within the past year. Last April, there was a worldwide revolt against the privately-owned, multi-billion dollar company, with one major attack against the ITEX Headquarters in Germany. While an official report had never been issued, there were rumors circulating that mutants, products of ITEX's supposed illegal experimentation on humans, were fighting back within the closed walls of the headquarters. One particular person of interest was Maximum Ride, a fifteen-year-old avian-human hybrid, whom we have reported on during several other occasions.

Maximum Ride claimed that she and her "Flock" had been created by scientists at "the School", a supposed branch of ITEX, where their DNA was fused with two-percent of avian, resulting in a variety of bird-like qualities, including their trademark wings, which have been successfully photographed on many occasions. When government authorities received this unusual account of illegal human experimentation, they immediately launched a thorough, in-depth investigation of ITEX which is still in progress.

In response to a reporter's inquiry at today's press conference, Dr. Polymer reassured the public that all of ITEX's ventures were "completely legal, ethical, and ultimately will be beneficial to the globe in coming years." Time will tell in the coming months from the multiple investigations whether Dr. Polymer's assertions are truthful. -Carson Williams

Well, nice to know that our beloved country is trying to hold the bad guys accountable. I was a little unsettled that there was a whole paragraph dedicated to the Flock, though. So much for inconspicuous, although I imagine that we threw that out the window when we flew through the roof of that glass restaurant in New York City over a year ago. Upon quick inspection, I realized that Sweetie had tons of information like this against ITEX pinned up against every inch of space on her wall. A photograph of a terrified little girl with fins swimming away from armed men on motorboats; quickly jotted phone numbers and addresses of various "Dr.'s"; scans of check receipts of millions of dollars made out to "The Institute for Higher Living"; even a coffee-stained napkin with the words " 96.2% human + 3.8% monkey? Plausible". I shuddered at that: humans and monkeys don't mix well from my experience.

While I was gaping at this impressive compilation of incriminating evidence against my arch-foes, Sweetie was sorting through several files, taking out various pages, examining them, and putting them back. With a shout of triumph, she turned to me and held out a stapled packet of pages. The cover read, "ITEX Headquarters, as of October 20_ (A.N. Fill in the blank with the current year)". I flipped through the sheets, skimming over various maps with red circles around different buildings and official blueprints of the central offices, instructions for shutting off power and bulleted lists of locations where spare keys for rooms are held. "Oh my gosh, Sweetie. Where did you get this stuff?"

"I do much more than run a donut shop, Max. The second I saw Lex's ears and tail, I knew I had to hunt this company down. They can't be allowed to do this to innocent children. I have various sources, mostly through Jeb, and I sometimes am able to hack through their firewalls. They don't know I have this information, so when it's time to attack, we'll have the element of surprise-"

"Wait a minute," I stopped her. "_We'll_ have the element of surprise? Sweetie, you're not coming with us."

"Yes, I am." Who died and put her in charge?

"No, you're not. We have to stay focused when we're in battle. We can't be worried about…"

"Me. Because I'm just a human." She sounded offended.

I took a breath, and spoke the truth. "Yes. You are not genetically enhanced. You couldn't hold your own against three-hundred pound wolf-men made of pure muscles and claws. The second they would get a hit in, you'd be knocked out cold, or worse. Trust me. It's safer for everyone if you just stay here."

This thirty-something-year-old lady glared at me with the steely gaze I once thought was mine, but then again, Sweetie had been alive longer. We stared at each other, a silent smack down raging in the attic of the small house. Suddenly, Lex stepped into the room. We broke the tension in surprise.

"What's going on?" he asked, looking worriedly between our intense faces. I explained everything to Lex, and to my relief, he sided with me. "Sweetie, you're not coming, and that's that." I can't put my finger on it exactly, but something about Lex's flaming neon green eyes and thick black hair standing on end influenced Sweetie, and she sighed in resignation.

"Fine."

That evening, following an extensive nap, we loaded our backpacks, stomachs, and pockets with provisions, the valuable packet of insider info that Sweetie gave me folded in my inner jacket pocket. A thick, gray fog concealed the top of the Golden Gate Bridge, providing a foreboding background to our farewell to Sweetie, my long-lost aunt.

I gave her a hug. While embracing me, she hissed in my ear, "Bring him back. Bring my Lex back, Maximum Ride."

"I will." I pulled back and joined the others, my original five Flock mates as well as the two newbies. That's when I realized that we had a problem. While seven of the eight of us had the gift of flight, Lex did not.

I turned to him with concern on my face, but he interjected, "Don't worry. After you guys take off, I'll catch up."

Maybe this kid didn't realize how fast we were going. "How are you going to do that?"

He smirked his cat-like smile, "Cats have their ways."

I shrugged. I nodded at the others, and one by one, they took to the skies. Sweetie looked on with wonder at our wings. Somehow, the way that a San Francisco moon hits our feathers makes them light up like they are made of pure silver. Lex gave me the go-ahead, and I took a running start and jumped up high into the air. Soaring up to a relatively low cruising altitude, I glanced down and saw that Lex was…

Running. But not like a person runs. Like a cheetah. A crazy, genetically-enhanced cheetah. On all fours and everything. I think his hair even changed color to the cheetah's classic polka-dotted coloring. Wow, 'Cats have their ways'? No kidding. I laughed in disbelief, as we traveled north at top speeds. We would hit Seattle at daybreak.

A.N. Alright, so I felt really bad about making you all wait so long for an update. That's why this one was pretty long. I have never written a newspaper article, though, so hopefully that one seems authentic and all. (BTW, Carson Williams is my generic OC-type reporter. He appears in a TV news report in my other story, Nevermore: A Maximum Ride Novel.)

Miranda: ICBN, why do you do this to us?

Me: Do what?

Nudge: Keep us locked up in the virtual jail of your computer? It's dirty, it has no food, it's boring…

Lex: *trembling* I was trapped here for weeks with a bunch of girls.

Miranda: You're a horrible author, ICBN.

Lex: Tell me about it.

Nudge: You don't hold a candle to James Patterson. He actually publishes his stories, so we get to live in people's bookshelves, which are much nicer than computers-

Me: OKAY, OKAY, I GET IT! But what am I supposed to do? Flunk school? Because that is NOT happening. I'll try to update more often, kiddos, but there's this concept called homework that none of you have to deal with on a daily basis. Just… *sigh* I'm updating Nevermore next, or maybe I'll write a one-shot or short story. Thanks again to all my reviewers! Your words are like chocolate in my world!


	12. According to plan REAL

WHOOPSEE! I POSTED THE WRONG CHAPTER EARLIER! SORRY! HERE YA GO!

A.N. Hello, my wonderful, awesome readers! Long time no see! Or, read. If any of you are in high school, you'll understand why it's taken so long. Plus, I had the awesome event of NaNoWriMo to deal with (you all should try it next year - November!).

Here is **Chapter 12**! It's that time of year again: winter break = 42 hours in the car with my family + my laptop + my iPod = lots of new chappies!

By the way, I may save some of my grandma's homemade cookies for anyone who reviews. This chapter is dedicated to my reviewers, especially alj97 and NudgexWink!

Miranda: I hate you, ICBN.

Me: I know, sorry about the wait.

**CHAPTER 12: According to plan**

Nudge POV

The sun was just starting to peek over the Seattle skyline. The Flock was coasting quietly, a few thousand feet above the streets below. I glanced down at Lex, admiring his speed. His hair was very thick and golden this time, with little black spots, and his cat ears were shaped differently than their original triangular form. His tail was the same color as his hair and whipped around behind him. Lex was a full-out cheetah, plus genetic enhancements that kept him in step with our fast speed.

I smiled to myself as he bobbed and weaved through the streets and sidewalks, dodging light poles and jumping over the occasional trash can. I couldn't deny it; he was pretty cute. Angel swooped out beside me. "You like him, don't you?" she called out over the wind.

I must have been blushing pretty obviously, because she giggled and continued, "You're not the only one. Miranda has her eye on Iggy." I glanced over at my twin; it was true, she was chatting and laughing with the tall blind boy. That reminded me of something, that day in the motel where Angel had apparently scrambled Miranda's thoughts… or… something…

Gah! She did it again! "Angel! Stop that!" I glared at my friend, and she bowed her head sheepishly. "Why are you doing that to people's thoughts, anyways?" She didn't answer.

Ahead, at the point of the V-formation, Fang was looking over the wealth of information Max had gotten from Sweetie back in San Francisco while Max was scanning the street signs below for the one we were looking for. Judging by her very frustrated-looking face, I could tell it wasn't going well. All bird-kids have an innate sense of direction, and can generally make our way back to wherever we've been. But when it comes to following instructions, whether from papers or from people, Max has always fallen short. Sometimes that's saved all of our lives, but other times, like now, it just made things difficult.

The Gasman zoomed up below Max and yelled, "Maybe we should land on that skyscraper and see if we can get an idea of where we are?"

Max frowned and answered grudgingly, "Fine." I focused into the far distance where Gazzy had been pointing and recognized the Space Needle. A few minutes later, we descended and clung to the roof of the iconic building. Below, Lex was resting on a bench, his hair returning to black. I watched distractedly as he messed his hair up so that it hid his ears and his tail disappeared somewhere… I won't say where. He relaced his sneakers and looked up at the rest of us with those impossibly green eyes. I met his gaze, and he smiled a smile so awesome that it made my feathers shiver. Focus, Nudge.

Everyone stared out in different directions, looking for the street where ITEX was supposed to be. Suddenly, Iggy cried out, "There it is!" We crowded around him, trying to spot the street. Wait a minute.

Max turned on Iggy. "No time for jokes, Iggy." He just chuckled and held up his hands in his classic _Don't Hit Me, Max_ gesture.

Finally Fang saw the actual street, and we cautiously approached it on foot. We would be much less obvious to radar if we walked, Max had explained. Finally, we stood before a tall, immense building. The bricks were dark grey and in some places, black. Up above the doorway were the words in silver metal "ITEX: The Future of Mankind". Yeah right. All in all, the place gave off creepy, evil vibes. I mean, even more so than usual.

Even Max seemed uneasy, but told the rest of us in her strong, leaderly voice, "Remember everyone, we're looking for Dr. Polymer. And feel free to grab anything that looks useful." She looked at me and nodded towards the door. I reached out and grasped the handle for the door in my hand. Instantly, the scene changed to a bunch of people walking into the building together. Some wore black business suits, others had white lab coats, and some wore blue security guard uniforms. One person stood out to me, though. She looked stern and very intelligent, but had a knowing glint in her eye, as if she knew all your secrets and wouldn't hesitate to use them against you. Her lab coat floated around her like a villain's cape, and as she climbed the steps to the building, the sun reflected off her name badge: Dr. Gwen Polymer, Director of ITEX Experimentation. The scene faded, and I blinked. Here we go. I pushed open the door, and we entered the dragon's den.

Dr. Polymer POV

I was making my rounds through the eastern wing. Checking the clipboards in front of each room, I initialed on a few lines, went into the rooms, and examined the experiments. I hummed a Top 40 song as I adjusted machinery, turned on lights, and gave some experiments injections. My work was invigorating, the euphoria of realizing that I had created a new species was unmatched, and let's face it. The pay was incredible.

After about an hour of the morning routine, I returned down in my office, turned on my expensive computers, and settled in for the less-than-fun aspect of my job: phone calls. The phone rested against my ear while I looked over the reports of last night. The bigwig investor on the other end of the line was ranting about how the government investigations were bad for his publicity. I turned on my reassuring voice, telling him how everything was going to turn out fine, etc. Meanwhile, I replied to some emails from various scientists from Germany, Italy, Japan, and Argentina. At the same time, I was thinking about my lunch date with my friend in the Technology department. What can I say? I'm a very good at multitasking.

Interrupting my work was the low beep of the intercom. I put the cranky investor on hold and pressed the button to answer. "What's the problem?" I growled irritably.

The trembling voice of Jean in Security replied, "Doctor… there are intruders. In the… front foyer. I think they're the… um… mutants that you-"

I screamed over the intercom, "Well, don't just sit there, Jean! Send your men down there to detain them!" I could hear him flinch through the speaker and rolled my eyes. I told the impatient investor, "I'm afraid I'll have to get back to you later, Mr. Lighton. Have a good day!" Quickly, I sent off my emails, and practically raced to the elevator. This was the day I had been waiting for.

The elevator doors opened, and I strode briskly down the long corridor to the entry foyer. I came to a stop, taking in the wonderful scene before me. Over a dozen guards had guns trained on a pitiful group of eight kids. I smiled welcomingly at them.

"Why, Maximum Ride. It's an honor to finally meet you in person."

The eldest girl glared at me with hard brown eyes. "Cut the baloney, Gwen. We're _way_ past the nice-nice phase. Just get rid of Miranda's brain problems and we'll get out of your hair."

I had heard of Max's attitude. Many, so, so many people from ITEX and beyond had failed to get this experiment under control. I smiled to myself. If all went according to plan, I would finally rein in the great Maximum Ride. I turned my attention to the boy with the wild black hair and bright green eyes. "Lex Furtum. How wonderful to have you back." His eyes likewise narrowed in an angered glare.

I turned to Jean and instructed him in full hearing range of the fugitive mutants, "Take them up to the west wing cells and begin drawing blood for the first wave of experiments." Behind me, I could hear the outraged gasps of the children.

One voice rose above the rest. "Wait. It's me you want, right?" I turned around in triumph. The owner of the question stepped forward.

I nodded happily at the subject called Miranda. I had the pleasure of creating this experiment myself. Miranda avoided the incredulous looks of her fellow subjects and continued, "If I go with you, the rest of them can go free?"

"Absolutely."

"All right, then." Miranda hugged her sister and said something softly to the rest of them, then walked over to my side. Just like that.

Max was furious, which didn't really bother me. I had what I wanted. I nodded at Jeans, and he gave the signal for the rest of the guards to shoot the subjects. Miranda screamed, but I placed my hand on her shoulder in a somewhat comforting gesture. "They're just tranquilized." The guards moved in on the subjects, while I guided Miranda back to the elevator.

Now things would get interesting.

A.N. Sorry it was short; exciting chapter comes next! So review! What did you think? Anything I did wrong? Criticism welcomed!


	13. Cages? Again?

A.N. Thank you so much, Betakeys, for alerting me that I had uploaded the wrong chapter… Hehe. Sorry about that, everyone! Anyways, here's **Chapter 13**! I made it crazy-long as an apology for the misuploaded Chapter 12 and for making the real Chapter 12 very short. Enjoy! Or not, that's okay, too.

**CHAPTER 13: Cages? Again?**

Miranda POV

I blinked slowly as I awakened. Beside me, the Gasman was groaning while Max was pacing anxiously above all of us. The events of the past day hit me like a truck, and I choked back tears.

Yeah, I'm Miranda and I'm with the Flock. Nudge had pretended to be me and gone with Dr. Polymer. The doctor couldn't tell the difference between us, which was why she happily took my twin as her captive by accident. I think I had an idea why Nudge did it, though. She didn't want the whole Flock trapped in cages when only one of us was needed for whatever horrible tests Dr. Polymer had in store. Plus, her ability to sense the past through touch would be more helpful; Angel said that she couldn't read anyone's mind inside the ITEX building, so Nudge would be the only one who could get that sort of information. I gathered all this from her quick words to the rest of us, "It'll turn out okay."

It didn't hurt any less. I mean, I only went through one day of those evil tests and I had nightmares about it. These kids I was traveling with went through years of that kind of torture. Feeling guilty for Nudge's selflessness, I didn't meet Max's eyes as she paced back and forth. A few minutes later, the rest of the Flock and Lex stirred and woke up. I looked at our surroundings. It was still morning, and we were piled up in an alleyway next to a trash dumpster. Still in Seattle. I sighed in relief. Better to still be in the city than in, say, New York or something.

As soon as Lex's verdant eyes flew open, he jackknifed to his feet and hissed. His black hair was puffed out even more than normal, and his tail thrashed angrily around him. He searched the pile of bird-kids and his cat ears flattened in fury when he didn't see Nudge among us. He pulled me to my feet, and we crowded around Max as she came up with a rescue plan.

Max shut her eyes, and we waited for her to compose her thoughts. Her steely gaze held us captive as she whispered quickly, "I wasn't thinking before. We shouldn't have strolled up to the front doors of the ITEX building. This time, we'll pull a sneak entry. Using the most unlikely way possible."

Gazzy piped up, "What way is that, Max?"

"We'll have to see when we get there." Max led the way down the streets, knowing where we were going this time.

We paused a few blocks down from the ITEX building. Max instructed us, "Case the joint. Look for any entry that doesn't look like something the personnel would use. Preferably one without security cameras." We nodded and broke off, some of us flying up the short distance and sneaking across the roofs of the adjacent buildings, while others crept down various side alleyways.

I followed Fang as he scooted through a narrow gap between a beauty salon and a cell phone store. We saw a hidden wall of the dark ITEX building and crouched secretively below it. Fang nodded and we started searching the wall for anything that would give us entry. Fang whistled, and I saw what he had found: a metal door with no handle or keypad or card slot. But it was something. He jumped upward, flapping his huge black feathered wings slowly, and whistled a shrill call to the rest of the Flock and Lex. Meanwhile, I searched the wall for anything to get us in through this door. If Nudge had been here, she could've just pulled the door off with her bare hands.

Then again, there was a chance that I could use my "external telekinesis" and pull the door off with my mind. But that would mean having another episode, and I didn't want to risk the lack of control that came with it.

Something towards the ground caught my eye; it was an air vent, near a gutter. I yanked off the rusted metal grate and peered down the shaft. It was pretty sizeable, but not even Angel could fit in there… The others arrived, and I pointed to the air vent. Max looked regretful, like she knew someone in the past that could have fit in there. I heard her mutter, "Total… still on his honeymoon…" I didn't ask.

We stood there awkwardly for a minute, and then Lex sighed and said. "I can try something," he grumbled regretfully. He backed up for the rest of us, got on his hands and knees and squinted his eyes shut hard, like he was concentrating on something.

Suddenly, he shuddered, and started shrinking! His hands turned into tiny cat paws, his tail turned small, and his black hair covered him all over.

Led had turned into a cat. An adorable black kitten with bright green eyes.

Needless to say, we were all dumbfounded at this new development. Gazzy snickered and tried to pet Lex's cute little head, but Lex growled and slashed at Gazzy's hand, claws and all. I could see cat-Lex roll his eyes as good as he could, and he padded up to the air vent with the silent grace of your common housecat. He pounced into the air shaft and was gone.

Iggy frowned. "What just happened?"

Max grinned in disbelief. "Lex… just turned into a wittle putty tat."

We all burst out in laughter.

Lex POV

It's not fun being a kitten, no matter how cute it sounds. I hadn't morphed in over a year, and even when I did, it was only for emergencies. The Erasers had it easy; when they morphed into their wolfy form, they still remained vaguely human-sized, if not larger. When I turned full-on cat, every molecule of my body shrank, pushing together. Pretty painful.

On the plus side, I look _really_ good as a cat.

My eyes rapidly adjusted to the dank, shadowy air shaft, my paws stepping lightly on the cold metal. I leaped up to a high ledge. My ears turned forward, taking in every clang and whoosh of the various vents in the system activating and deactivating. I softly hissed at a large black spider on a web above me, and it skittered away in fear. I needed to find a way to the door so I could open it from the inside and let the rest of the Flock into ITEX.

I came to a hole in the floor. Crouching tensely at the edge, I peered over the edge, my tail held straight and still behind me. At the bottom of the hole, a pair of security guards were sitting in old fold-away chairs, smoking cigarettes and chuckling in low, grumbly voices. I took a small breath and slid over the edge of the hole. No matter how many times I willingly fell several yards to a distant ground, I always had to remind myself, "Cats always land on their feet."

I dropped to the tiled floor, landing in a low crouch. I was so silent that the guards didn't notice me, but when I turned to look at the door, I remembered yet another downsize to being less than two feet tall: I couldn't reach the handle. I sighed, walked over to the security guards, sat back on my haunches and started mewing pitifully. They glanced down in surprise, and I heard one say, "Look Reynolds. It's a cat." A tubby man with a grizzled beard leaned close, and I wanted to retch at his garlic breath, but held myself together. "Pretty cute, too."

He stretched out a hand and I allowed him to stroke my head. It was a good thing none of the others couldn't see me now - especially Nudge. I purred and walked over to the door, just wanting to get the whole thing over with. The two guards followed me, and I started scratching the door, whining as if I needed to get outside. One of them turned the knob, and I raced out, inwardly snickering. So gullible.

Outside the door, Max grinned evilly at the guards' astounded faces. I have to say, it was a pretty intimidating scene: six dangerous-looking kids waiting to punch your lights out and run into the building you're supposed to be guarding. I rolled my shoulders and gratefully returned to my human form, then followed the Flock inside ITEX past the unconscious bodies of the security guards.

Max consulted her ITEX contraband info, and we started sprinting down various halls and down several flights of stairs. We made it to the executive offices where we could possibly find Dr. Polymer's headquarters, but before we got far down the corridor, I felt my hair stand on end. All of our instincts told us to leave, but it was too late.

For the second time that day, we found several guns trained on us. And I doubted that these would shoot simple tranquilizer darts. Frustrated, we obeyed the guards' orders to put our hands behind our heads and walk single file away from the executive offices. Max was cursing under her breath, and Miranda looked like she wanted to behead all of these security officers on the spot.

We were taken all the way down to a basement floor and shoved into a large jail cell. For once, they avoided individual dog crates and upgraded us to a group cell. Let's give a round of applause for the whitecoats; they're _learning_! For a few seconds, we sat on the dusty floor dejectedly, and then Miranda sprang to her feet and gripped the bars tightly. She stared out into the unlit gloomy room for a moment, and smacked her head against the metal hard.

All I thought was, _One of us has already cracked_.

Miranda POV

It's not fair. Can't we catch a break? Why did these ITEX people have to hire so many security guards and give them guns? What did they want with us? With me? We weren't that powerful, were we? But then again, we were super-avian-human hybrids. And Lex was a long-lost successful experiment. I guess we were pretty powerful.

Power… Could I maybe try to achieve what those papers I saw in my dream said I could do? Control myself during my episodes and keep the powers? But did I really want to risk that with all my friends in the same room as me? I banged my forehead against the jail bars in annoyance.

A few minutes later, the door to the hallway outside was flung open. In walked Dr. Polymer… and Nudge! Everyone sighed in relief that she was still alive. I mean, sure she was gagged and bound, but she was still in one piece! Dr. Polymer's hand was clutching my sister's shoulder with knife-like nails, and Nudge was wincing slightly.

"Your deceit was impressive, subjects, even though it didn't last long" she snarled spitefully. Apparently she found out that Nudge was not the one she was looking for. "But enough games. Miranda, you're coming with me."

I was fed up with this lady. I glared at her with what was hopefully a stubborn face, and retorted, "Not on your life."

Dr. Polymer frowned at my lack of submission. It was pretty weird; in my pre-mutant days, I always obeyed adults without a thought, it was just how I was raised. But now I was daring to challenge an evil scientist, with my life in the balance? I had to say, it felt kind of good. Dr. Polymer said in a calm voice, "It would be better if you followed orders, Miranda. Unless you want your twin hurt, or worse." She drew from her side a black and yellow gun-like object and pointed it at Nudge's head.

It was a Taser. Swallowing back waves of fear for my sister, I bluffed, "So what? I don't like her at all. Go ahead." Hopefully Nudge understood that I didn't mean it.

Dr. Polymer's eyes narrowed, and she walked over to our cage. She was now aiming at Iggy. Something in my face must have betrayed my true feelings to the woman, because she smiled triumphantly. "How about you cooperate, so none of your _friends_ get injured?"

Iggy shook his head at me, as did Max and Fang. I didn't have much experience with ITEX, but they were capable of doing very bad things to the world, I was sure. And they were wanting to use me to do it, and we all knew that couldn't happen. Though it pained me, I answered, "Never." Dr. Polymer raised her eyebrows and shrugged.

Then she tased Iggy. He jerked from the volts of electricity running through his body. His sightless blue eyes widened.

Snap! I was instantly thrown into an episode at the sight of Iggy's pain. I almost slipped into the backseat of the movie-theater-like experience, but I fought the tendency and suddenly found myself at the control of the Miranda-machine! The world pulsed with unnatural colors, and I felt strength in my muscles and my mind.

_First things first_, I thought. Moving between Dr. Polymer and Iggy with more speed than ever, I grabbed the cords connecting the electrodes to the gun and yanked them out of Iggy with my bare hands. Little pinpricks sparked in my palms, but they were more ticklish than painful. I threw the electrical cords back through the bars at Dr. Polymer, and she retreated.

Alarm started to show on her face. She probably hadn't been expecting this. In her haste to get away from me, she didn't pay attention to Nudge, who kicked her knees forward and escaped her grasp, running to join the rest of us. Her large brown eyes met my likely bright blue ones in fear. I didn't know how to reassure her that I wasn't going to attack her first chance I got, but I attempted to smile. She gripped the bars and I focused on the metal, and together, we managed to pry the bars apart, making a space large enough for the rest of the Flock to escape the cage. During the time it took to do that, Dr. Polymer had called in a swarm of armed guards, who yet AGAIN had guns trained on each of our faces.

This time, Dr. Polymer didn't hesitate to take us out. "Shoot them!" she commanded. Everyone around me tensed, but I subconsciously thought, _Shield_. Every bullet froze in midair, just like they did at the Martinez's house.

Obviously, things were about to get interesting.

(A.N. See, I was going to end the chapter there, but I feel bad about everything, so I'm going to keep going! Imagine this as Chapter 13 Part 2.)

Nudge POV

Dr. Polymer practically dragged me to the elevator, and I cast a glance back at my friends, watching them falling to the ground, the colorful feathers of tranquilizer darts being the only sign that they weren't being massacred. My view of them ended as the elevator doors slipped shut. I turned to look at the woman sharing the elevator with me.

She observed me like I was an insect. I knew the feeling from those years back at the School. Her dark green eyes looked me over like she was appraising a very old car. I frowned as she sniffed haughtily, murmuring to herself, "I expected her to be taller by now."

Now that wasn't fair. I was plenty tall.

I wanted to punch this woman in her condescending face, but I had a very good feeling that there were several security cameras watching me, and a whole bunch of guards were likely waiting for us as soon as the elevator got to the right floor.

The doors opened, and I saw that I was right. We got an armed escort to an executive office. Dr. Polymer gestured to a hard black chair in front of a desk, and I sat, soaking in my surroundings as fast as possible, just like Jeb and Max had trained us all to do whenever we found ourselves in a tough spot.

There wasn't much to look at, though. Framed certificates covered one wall, stating stuff like: Graduating Class Valedictorian, MIT; Most Valuable Employee, ITEX; License for Scientific Experimentation (I wondered what government idiot actually gave her that.); etc. The other wall was just a huge whiteboard with tons of drawings and notes in squiggly handwriting that I didn't even try to read. Several images were taped up, as well as graphs and charts with parts highlighted and circled.

But in her defense, Dr. Polymer was a very good interior decorator. I mean, as far as evil labs went, this one was very nice. Hardwood flooring, the occasional potted plant, etc.

Dr. Polymer sat back in a high-backed cushiony spinny-chair on the other side of the desk, glancing up at me every now and then from a bulky file folder that she had open on her lap. Finally, she sighed and leaned forward. Her forest-green eyes peered at me over her rectangular glasses.

"Do you have any idea why you're here, Subject 8?"

_Remember, you're Miranda_, I told myself. "Well, I was planning on getting my brain issue resolved, but I doubt that's what you have in mind, eh Gwen?" Inwardly, I sighed. I could never be as good at disrespecting authority as Max was.

Dr. Polymer ignored my comment and continued. "You are the main subject in ITEX's new top secret experiment."

"Wow. I feel _so_ _honored_."

"Shut it." Dr. Polymer stood and started pacing the room. I braced myself for the traditional evil megalomaniac's lengthy monologue. And you should, too. "Subject 8, many months ago, ITEX suffered a heavy downfall. It was all because of your friends. The 'Flock' as they call themselves. Mostly, the leader, Max.

"They led a worldwide revolt against all of our headquarters. Most of ITEX's employees scattered, joining government jobs or just retiring in comfort. I was not one of them. I was one of the few who refused to give in. My colleagues and I decided to continue the dream of ITEX, to mold the future of mankind into a world of peace and tranquility. Granted, we were forced underground for several months, but in the time that we stayed hidden, we planned our next big project.

"It was well known how much of a problem your friend Maximum Ride was. In order to actually achieve our goals, we knew that we needed to eliminate the threat that she posed for our project. It was I who came up with idea to combine both objectives: take down Maximum Ride with the same weapon that we would use to save the future of mankind."

She paused, and I asked with the obvious question, "What kind of weapon?"

"The weapon is the ultimate experiment. Using the most successful recombinant experiment ever created, and adding a few new traits that would make it powerful. More powerful, even, than the great Maximum Ride. You're probably wondering which experiment this would be." I rolled my eyes and nodded. "At first we considered the mighty Omega, but he turned out to be sub-par. Too many weaknesses, and he was defeated by Maximum Ride herself.

"So we looked into past experiments. Most were failures. Erasers were out of the question. But we came across a certain feline-human hybrid that was the greatest experiment of his time. Your friend, Lex. Unfortunately, he had disappeared a few years into his training period, as well as all of his records and files used to create him. Such a shame.

"Then we realized that there was really only one way to defeat a bird-kid. And that was _with_ a bird-kid." It started to dawn on me. They couldn't be serious. Dr. Polymer smirked coyly at my bewildered expression. "I can see that you are starting to understand, Subject 8. We proceeded to look at the observations and records on the Flock. Sure, there weren't many left, but there was enough information for us to decide to activate an unused experiment. You."

Still playing the role of Miranda, I asked dutifully, "Me?"

"Yes, you. You see, when you and your twin sister Monique, or Nudge, were born, it was in one of the hospitals that we controlled to a certain degree. At the birth site, we injected a serum that would activate the bird-kid DNA already inside of you. But we only gave the injection to Nudge, skipping that step with you. We arranged it so that you would go home with your parents, but we took Nudge to the School.

"You grew up living a normal life, the bird DNA remaining inactive until that day a few months ago, in Austin, not Seattle, where I activated the DNA with the same serum your sister received at birth. The results were excellent. Your avian features, such as your wings, developed at a fast enough rate to catch up with Nudge's, which proved that old experiment a success. Now we needed to use you as our ultimate weapon.

"So I developed the Authority Test, a program designed to completely control several pre-set functions inside the subject, called the 'pawn'." _Pawn_? They were actually calling Miranda a _pawn_? "This is the real reason for your 'episodes' as you call it. I was behind it all. Using the Authority Test inside of you, Subject 8, we will take down Max, the Flock, and any enemies to our cause. And later on, you will be our ultimate weapon for the future of mankind."

I glared at Dr. Polymer. She was the reason Miranda had been going haywire the last couple weeks? Dr. Polymer pulled out what looked like the remote control that comes with modern car keys. She gleefully pointed it at my forehead and pressed a large blue button, as if she was expecting her favorite TV show to come on. I stared at her like she was crazy, and her evil green eyes widened at my lack of insane destruction. She pressed the button harder, but I was starting to smile. Her outraged expression was very amusing.

She closed her eyes and didn't say anything for a moment, probably telling herself to take deep calming breaths. (Among the mutant community, everyone knows that the whitecoats have shrinks who give them classes in anger-management.) Quietly, Dr. Polymer said, "You are not Subject 8."

"Sorry to disappoint you."

"You know what this means, don't you?"

"Enlighten me."

"Either your friends come to us, or we hunt them down."

"I hate to say it, doc, but all of these 'excellent' plans you have just aren't going to pan out. Maximum Ride is going to take you down, no matter how well your goofy Authority-whatever works out. It's just the way things are."

Dr. Polymer slapped me. But it was a sissy slap. Which explained why she needed so many guards. "You insolent brat, you-" On her desk, a little red light blinked, and a man's weak voice rose from a little speaker.

"Dr. Polymer, the mutants are back."

Dr. Polymer grinned a malicious grin and whispered, "Wonderful. Things are going to turn out just right."

I sincerely hoped she was wrong. She dragged me back to the elevator, across another hallway, and down a few flights of stairs. This was a very big building. We came to a small room, and Dr. Polymer held my shoulder firmly. A guard gagged me and tied my hands tightly against my back, and my wings ached from their cramped position. We entered the room, and I gasped.

Cages? Again?

Miranda already explained what happened, so I won't go over it all again. But it was horrible seeing a Flock member getting tased. Miranda shivered slightly, and then she went rigid. Dread ran over me as I saw that she was in an episode. She yanked the taser lines out of Iggy and Dr. Polymer retreated, digging for the little remote in her lab coat pocket while ordering the guards behind us to attack.

Miranda turned slowly to face me, her hands quivering at her sides in tight fists. I was somewhat terrified that she would go nuts and start attacking everyone in reach - including the good guys. But to my delight, her face didn't seem so fearsome and intense as it usually did in these episodes. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly into a teeny weeny smirk, seemingly insignificant, but enough that I just knew she was in control.

It was too easy getting out of Dr. Polymer's grip; then, under an unspoken agreement, Miranda and I pulled the bars apart enough to give the Flock and Lex room to get out. We grouped up together, instinctively getting into fighting positions. But the problem with dealing with ITEX's numerous armed guards is that… well… they're _armed_. And they started shooting as soon as they saw that we were preparing to take them down.

I, personally, have never been shot before. By real bullets, at least. Max has. Several times. But I wasn't looking forward to the inevitable day when I'd feel an honest-to-goodness gunshot wound.

That day turned out not to be gunshot-wound day after all. Miranda's shielding abilities saved us all, courtesy of her episodes. It was the coolest sight to see, with the bullets floating, bobbing back and forth… you had to be there.

In the midst of all this chaos, Dr. Polymer had managed to find her remote control. "Everybody freeze!" she yelled at the top of her lungs. Her dark bun had fallen loose and now strands of hair hung around her face. Her glasses lay crooked on her nose and her lab coat was wrinkled. Overall, she appeared disheveled, furious, and frankly, insane. But then again, what else is new when it comes to whitecoats?

Dr. Polymer shoved her way to the front of the mini army of ITEX soldiers. She pointed at Miranda with a shaky finger, breathing raggedly, like she was just barely holding back a scream of madness. "You!" she barked hoarsely. "You've caused enough trouble." She dramatically pressed the button on her remote control, and Miranda stiffened even more.

The rest of us started sliding backwards, pressed back by an invisible force.

The Authority Test.

The remote control.

Miranda…

Uh oh.

_Fight it, Miranda. Fight it!_ I screamed in my mind.

A.N. Ah. Climax. This story is starting to draw to a close. So sad, but still very exciting!

Lex: Hey, ICBN. If this story ends, will I… um… die?

Me: NO! The great thing about the Internet is that whatever gets posted on it stays there pretty much forever! That means that as long as survives, you survive, living on in the minds and hearts of the readers!

Lex: *whistles* Thanks. I feel so much better.

All: Review! Review! Review!


	14. Setting things right

A.N. Alright. I've been thinking for a long time. A really, really long time. A really, really, really, really-

Miranda: Just cut to the chase, already!

Me: Fine. I couldn't decide on an ending for a while.

Nudge: Big surprise.

Me: Quiet! I finally settled on something a little respectable. That's the next chapter after this one. Hopefully you, dear readers, will enjoy this extra-long chappie (thirteen pages on Microsoft Word!) as an apology for my failure to update this story by New Years' Day. Good news is, I am ending this story by the end of January! For more information about my plans for this story (and others), stay tuned for the end of Chapter 15, posted soon. Sorry if this chapter is dragged out, but I tried to make the climax as dramatic and lengthy as possible.

Angel: A little too lengthy, I think.

Me: Who asked you? *sigh* The holidays were driving me bananas. Here you go!

**CHAPTER 14: Setting things right**

Max POV

Ah, the thrill of a fight. There's just nothing like facing certain death in a top-secret facility, surrounded by your closest friends. Normally, I would love situations like this. It sure beats wandering aimlessly throughout North America with a ragtag team of mutants and no evil companies to defeat. The Flock, Lex, and I started going through the motions, preparing for the traditional hand-to-hand combat that we wonderful recombinant experiments are known for.

But, a good rule of thumb for anyone to follow is that _1)_ _Soldiers Don't Play Fair_. Before you could say "Maximum Ride is _way_ more awesome than Fang," we were being fired at, and not just one bullet at a time, like good little soldier-men, but dozens of bullets at once.

We would have been Swiss cheese, without a doubt. But all of a sudden, there was a ripple in the air (Like the _Force_! Er… I've been watching _way_ too much _Star Wars_ in my spare time. Dang you, Gazzy, for stealing those movies out of Blockbuster!), and the bullets stopped, frozen in midair. Let's hear it for long-lost twins of Flock members who can freeze speeding objects with their minds!

Another rule that has never let me down? _2)_ _Whitecoats Are Insane_. That wingnut Dr. Polymer was screaming at her men and digging for something in her pocket. When she finally yelled, "Everybody freeze!" all our attention was on her solely because she had clearly lost her marbles.

She gave the traditional dramatic whitecoat rant about how much trouble we caused, then clicked a little button thingy at Miranda's head. Miranda, already in an episode, now joined Dr. Polymer in going berserk. An unseen pressure started making the rest of us slide backwards on the tiled floor.

Not good.

Miranda POV

Someone had invaded my mind. My first suspicion was Angel, but her mind-reading abilities were useless inside the ITEX building. A very evil cackle sounded inside my head, and I jumped. Someone was pressing in on me, similar to my earlier episodes, except I knew exactly who this someone was. Dr. Polymer's cocky voice rammed into my forehead, "You have no control, Subject 8. Just let me do what needs to be done, and no one gets hurt."

Obviously, she was lying. "'No one gets hurt'? Really? Somehow, I think a _lot_ of people are going to get hurt."

"You just don't know what is best for the earth, Subject 8."

"Stop! First of all, enough with the 'Subject' talk. I have a name, and it's Miranda. Secondly, what's best for the earth is getting you wack-jobs in jail where you belong."

"Jail?" Dr. Polymer screamed in outrage, and I winced a little at the mental noise.

"Yes, jail. Anyone who wants to take over the world belongs in jail, or better yet, prison." Was this a new concept, or was she just dense?

Her demonic laughter echoed in my ears. "Oh, Subject 8. You have completely misinterpreted our vision. _We do not want to take over the world._" Wait. What? "That kind of goal is ridiculously pointless, and pretty low on our priorities. We are going beyond that. We are _ending_ the world."

Did I hear her correctly? "What do you mean by that?"

"This world is going down. It's imminent, since many world powers have obtained and are prepared to activate nuclear warheads. The second one of them cracks, this planet will fall in ashes. We will quicken the process with ITEX's new project: the Authority Test. Using you, Subject 8, we will accelerate the event of nuclear war by obtaining a single devastating bomb and detonating it, setting the nuclear battles in motion. ITEX's previous By-Half plan was doomed from the start. However, with our new project, _every_ human shall die in the warfare, except for those successfully mutated. And with the strength and invincibility of your enhanced powers, Subject 8, we will be unstoppable as we bring this earth to a new era of glory!"

Whoa. Delusional much? I diverted my attention from this loony conversation in my head to see what was happening in the real world. My friends were pinned against the walls, even being pushed into the concrete, clumps of rocks raining down around them. The soldiers had no opposition and were efficiently beating up everyone, even Max.

_Come on, dummy! Stop hurting your friends!_ I yelled at myself, and shoved Dr. Polymer as far out of my mind as I could. The invisible force pressing back my friends slackened, and Max leaped into a very impressive flip out of the unseen barrier, taking out three or four enemies when she landed on the tiled floor. Nudge was screaming something at me, but there was a roaring in my ears from the adrenaline, and I couldn't hear her. I bet it was something important. Huh.

Just then I was smacked in the face with the butt of a rifle and tumbled to the ground. Ouch. However, my new reflexes kicked in, and I slid swiftly between the legs of the guard, cracking the sides of my hands into his Achilles's heels. He tumbled downwards, and I climbed onto his falling body, snatching up his gun and aiming.

Except, at first, I was aimed at the good guys. Oops. I corrected my aim and found myself pointing the gun at Dr. Polymer. Without a thought, my finger instantly tightened on the trigger, and with an earsplitting _CRACK! _a single bullet came flying out of the barrel. As before, time slowed to a lazy caterpillar crawl. I could actually see the air billowing away from the point of the bullet, flying back in a wavy wake of the speeding object. Dr. Polymer's deep green eyes slowly widened in shock, her mouth parted in a surprised "o".

Then, the bullet started to curve away from its trajectory towards the evil doctor. It spun into a hard turn, now zooming to the right wall.

Now zooming to the Flock.

Now zooming towards Nudge.

Towards her shaking outstretched hand.

Contact.

My sister's agonized scream punched my ears like an arrow into a paper target. I staggered, a red haze clouding my vision. Dr. Polymer had made her way back into my thoughts and was taunting me relentlessly. I could hear the freaked voices of Max, Lex, Nudge… all of them.

This was too much. Had you asked me several months ago if I would have tried to shoot a person, no matter how evil she was, I would have laughed in your face and run away in the opposite direction. If Nudge hadn't yanked that bullet away from Dr. Polymer's head and into her hand… I would have killed the woman.

I couldn't do this anymore. It was hopeless.

I was hopeless.

A lost cause.

The world was lost, too.

Nudge POV

Okay, so what I said in that last chapter about how this day wouldn't be a day for gunshot-wounds? I guess I lied.

It probably wasn't my smartest move, magnetically pulling the bullet away from Dr. Polymer and instead shooting my palm. And it hurt like… Like a bullet wound, I guess. I screamed briefly as I saw the… blood… But I guess it was worth it. _No one_ deserves to die, not even people as dastardly as Dr. Polymer. At least, that's what _I_ believe; Max would have shot the lady without a moment's hesitation. Everything else turned blurry, but here's what I remember.

I was on the ground; Max was standing over me, guarding me from the enemy soldiers and taking out dozens a minute. Iggy was passed out from the Taser, poor guy. (Apparently, electric shocks like that take a number on our bird-kid pulses. He didn't wake up until later on in the fight.) Gazzy was trying to guard both Angel and Iggy, but he's only nine, so he wasn't as effective as Max or Fang. Fang was trying to fight his way to team up with Lex, who was springing off the ceiling and walls, using his unsheathed four-inch claws like handfuls of Swiss-army knives. So athletic… Focus!

Max was yelling something at Gazzy and Angel, and I struggled to listen to their conversation through my haze.

She called out, "Angel! Can you get in Miranda's head?" She turned to make an uppercut to a soldier's face.

Angel shook her head quickly. "No! There's a wall! I'm trying!" She ducked to dodge a punch. "I need to get her attention! Something to surprise her enough to let me in!"

Gazzy frowned for a moment. "How do we do that?" Then, he gave a mischievous grin as he kicked a soldier where the sun don't shine. "Hold on. I've got an idea…"

In a flawless imitation of Iggy's voice, Gazzy yelled as passionately as he could, "Miranda! I love you with all of my heart! After this is all over, I want to marry you in New Hampshire!"

Oh boy. I sincerely hoped Iggy was out cold, for Gazzy's sake.

I saw Miranda, her face previously looking conflicted and on the verge of tears as she fought against Dr. Polymer, now jump and turn towards Gazzy/Iggy's general direction. Gazzy got her attention, all right. Angel cried out triumphantly, "I'm in!"

Angel POV

The barriers at ITEX meant to suppress my mind-reading were very advanced, and pretty strong, I had to admit. But they weren't perfect, and soon I was able to read most of the minds in the room. Except for Dr. Polymers and Miranda's.

Gazzy's trick cracked a hole in Miranda's mental wall, and I visualized myself crawling through. There was a battle happening in Miranda's head, and it looked like Dr. Polymer was winning. I could see Miranda locked away in what looked like a jail cell thing. Her wings were splayed out, ragged and limp. She was sobbing and pulling on her hair a little. The sight was pa-the-tic. But then I saw what Dr. Polymer was showing Miranda. Images of blood, mass destruction, crying children, dead bodies lying abandoned on city streets, mushroom clouds (not Gazzy-clouds, but bomb-clouds), shock waves, machine guns, falling ash, fires, debris from broken pavement…

Basically, the end of the world as we know it.

Another image flashed, and lingered in Miranda's head. A girl with curly dark hair, caramel skin, and brown eyes was strapped to a missile, soaring downwards toward the earth. My breath caught in my throat. It was Nudge.

Miranda screamed out, "No! No, no, no nonononononononono! Not her!"

The scene flashed, and one thing had changed. The color of the girl's eyes had turned blue. Only Miranda had eyes that could change color to blue. It was Miranda strapped to the missile now, falling to the earth at top speeds.

"Not me! Why me? Why? Why me? Why me? Why me? Why, why me?" she wailed.

Now where had I heard that before?

Nudge had said those very same words weeks back, before we even knew Miranda.

I had to end this.

All those times where I had scrambled my friends' minds in the past had prepared me for this moment. I learned how mental barriers worked, and now I would use them to my advantage against Dr. Polymer.

The question was, Where was she? At first, I couldn't detect her presence in this arena-like region of Miranda's mind. But then I found her crouched demonically behind a few thoughts of fear and pain. All of her attention was focused on something in her hands, and I peered over her shoulder to see. It looked like one of those new iPad thingies that we could never afford. It was flashing various screens with the same images that Miranda was seeing. The tablet must have been the real thing controlling Miranda this whole time! I gasped mentally, and Dr. Polymer spun around, at first in surprise, then in pleasure.

"Ah. The mind reader. It's about time you found a way through our barriers." She was so pompous and haughty, and I stuck my tongue out at her.

"Dr. Polymer, you need stop what you're doing. End the Authority Tests and surrender." I tried my most persuasive voice, but my mind-controlling powers were useless if I couldn't actually read Dr. Polymer's thoughts. Not even my plan to scramble her thoughts was panning out.

She chuckled darkly, towering over me by several feet. "Subject Six, you of all people know that that is never going to happen." It was true. There was no way this woman was going to willingly give up.

I took a break from Miranda's mind, instead turning towards Max. "It's not looking good. Miranda's got no control at all."

Max POV

What the flock?

Miranda was frozen in place, some unknown battle going on in her head. Nudge was bleeding hard on the floor, Iggy was Tased and passed out, Fang and Lex went down under a pile of soldiers a few minutes ago, and Angel was zoned out, trying to help Miranda out.

That just left me and Gazzy to fight these psychos. I chopped my hand down on the shoulder of an approaching soldier, whirling around to kick another in the neck. But for every man I took down, three more took his place. I'm no good at math, but I could tell that the odds were _definitely_ not in our favor. (A.N. Hunger Games!) And then, to make matters worse, Angel turned towards me, calling out over the fray, "It's not looking good. Miranda's got no control at all."

_Well, fudge monkeys. Come on, Max! Think!_

**Just follow your gut, Max. It will never steer you wrong. **WHAT? Since when was the Voice back? **Your instincts were designed to always lead you in the right direction.**

_Then how come we're in this wreck, huh? I followed my instincts already, and look where they've gotten us!_

**You haven't been following your instincts. You've been **_**thinking**_**, Maximum. When you first rescued Miranda, what were you thinking? You **_**weren't**_** thinking, you were just **_**doing**_**. You followed your instincts.**

_Well, yeah, but-_

**And you successfully brought all of your companions here, together, by following your instincts.**

_But when we got here, we failed! We failed immediately, and now we're failing again!_

**Those were two failures Max. As the saying goes, "The third time's the charm." I promise you; if you follow your instincts now, everyone will make it out.**

A promise from the Voice? Hm…

_Hello Instincts, It's me Max. We've had tons of good times together, and even more bad times. You've been helping me with basic stuff like fighting the baddies right now, and even bigger things like making split-second decisions. I need your help. Long story short, the Flock, Lex, and I are in a tight spot. I am flat out of ideas. If you don't help me, I don't think we're getting out of this building alive. I'm open for anything at this point._

Right… I was talking to my instincts. Don't judge, because if it weren't for them, you wouldn't be reading this right now! Almost instantly, a plan was formed, and I started acting out on it.

"Gazzy!" I yelled. "Keep guarding Angel!" His sky-blue eyes darted toward me quickly, and he gave a quick nod, leaping in front of his baby sister, glaring at any enemies coming near.

"Nudge, how are you doing?" She was wincing, but a few moments later, she took a deep breath and ripped off the bottom edge of her hoodie, wrapping it tightly around her hand. With the bleeding somewhat stopped, she stood to her feet and joined me in the fight.

In a rare grin for a time like this, she replied, "Pain is just a message, Max!" That's my girl.

"Great. Go help Fang and Lex over there. We need to gather together around Gazzy in the corner." She nodded, then cartwheeled through the narrow gaps between soldiers' bodies, avoiding the passed out soldiers on the ground.

Now Iggy. Still unconscious on the floor, the dude was dead to the world. I tried to kick him awake. "Come on, buddy. Wake up." He just groaned. I paused to sock a couple of approaching soldiers in the face, calling out to Angel. "Can you make Iggy get up?" I asked her. She concentrated for a second, and then Iggy's clouded grey-blue eyes flew open, and I pulled him to his feet. "How are you doing, Iggy?" I was pretty worried. Tasers were new territory for all of us, and I didn't know how a bird-kid would react to the electric shock.

"Amazing. Never better," he answered sarcastically. But the creases between his eyebrows told the true story. "I'll get to work on a you-know-what. Get everyone to duck when I give the signal." He dodged a kick, then retreated to a distant corner, whipping out a few wires and setting to work.

I took out a few more men, then pulled Angel aside. "Status report on the doctor. Can you do anything?"

Her wide shiny blue eyes looked at me earnestly. "She's trying to block me out of Miranda's mind again. She's got Miranda trapped in her own thoughts. If you can distract her enough, I can help Miranda escape. Once she's free, Miranda can take care of everything." Angel blinked. "Miranda's even more powerful than me, Max. If ITEX follows through with their plans for her, everything will end."

"Alright. One distraction, coming up." I leaped up, wings spread, gliding swiftly over the heads of the many soldiers between me and Dr. Polymer, and landing in front of the evil whitecoat. Miranda was staring out into space, a few tears dripping down from her unnatural turquoise eyes. I launched myself at Dr. Polymer, but Miranda, under the crazy woman's control, blocked me, taking me down with the strength of an Eraser. But I've beaten tons of Erasers in my lifetime.

I kicked her away as gently as I could while still defending myself. But she returned in her attack much faster than I thought. I blocked her rapid strikes, trying to find an opening to get at Dr. Polymer. Part of me was impressed; if Miranda could ever learn to control her newfound strength and agility, she would be a valuable ally in a fight.

_Hey, Voice, instincts, whoever's out there. I could really use a hint right now! Any weaknesses?_

**She was **_**designed**_** to have none, Max. Every part of her was created to defeat you.**

_That's helpful. There isn't anything?_

**Her wings are new and not totally mature. There are tender points. Get behind her, and hit the tender points.**

Ah. Experience has taught me where those tender points are. I whirled her around quickly, and before she could react, I dug my elbows into the tops of her wings. She screeched and fell like a stone. Well, that takes care of that. I turned toward Dr. Polymer, whose green eyes were glittering with intense hatred. I wasn't offended; many evil whitecoats have given me that very same look in my sad, short lifetime.

"Well, Gwen. Looks like your little pawn ain't invincible after all, eh?"

"Maximum Ride. You whfoszn goqweh fvuiodnz kjow gnaeiut bhogwnj qefdsfvgq…" Yeah, she probably said something more understandable than that, but I was busy signaling to Angel that the woman was distracted now. Far across the room, I saw Angel's blonde curls bounce up and down with her vigorous nod. Gazzy stood in front of her as she set to work at helping Miranda.

Miranda POV

Yikes. I knew that the apocalypse would be bad, but I didn't think it would be _this_ bad. Dr. Polymer definitely knew my weaknesses: blood, death, pain, etc. I was now trapped in my own mind. Metal bars, padlock, the whole shebang. And I did not like it at all.

But I didn't know how to get out, and I didn't think I ever would. Chances were good that in the real world the Flock and Lex were going to be imprisoned, or worse, and ITEX would start a nuclear war, the whole planet would die, and I would be the cause of it all.

Pessimism. It's not just for breakfast anymore.

What happened next still surprises me to this day. In my mind, I saw Angel, ANGEL of all people, crawling secretively behind Dr. Polymer and towards me. Dr. Polymer was clearly distracted with something in the real world, and didn't notice as Angel started working on the lock on my little jail cell, practically willing the little metal pins to line up just by thinking it. "Why are you helping me?" I hissed.

Then I got a horrible idea that Angel was going to secretly kill me in my own head. She had been messing with everyone's thoughts, and who knew what her motives were? But her creepy blue eyes were focused on the lock as she replied, "You're a Flock member. I'm loyal, even though you tried to choke me."

I winced. "Yeah… Sorry about that."

Angel shrugged as she worked. "Doesn't matter. If everything in Max's plan goes well, you won't have any more episodes anymore." That was the best news all day!

The lock popped loose with a faint _clink_, and I instantly felt refreshed and ready to kick some evil doctor bootie! I crawled out of my mini jail cell, standing to my full height. I nodded at Angel, "Thanks."

The little blonde girl smiled at me. Her blue eyes glimmered brightly in the weird lighting of my mind, and in an earnest voice, she told me, "You can do this. You have so much more power than you realize. Just direct your focus on Dr. Polymer, and let your mind do the rest."

Big words for one so small. I sucked in a deep breath, and closed my eyes. Even within the confines of my own mind, I went into a deeper consciousness. A deep, black, empty space. Every thought was clear and precise, as sharp as a knife.

I pictured Nudge, my sister, whose arrival in my life had brought me tons of energy, fun, and more love for people than I had ever felt, even for my parents. I pictured Max, who shoved me off a ledge and out of my comfort zone, forcing me to spread my wings and fly, forcing me to think for myself and not just let others make my decisions for me.

Then I pictured Dr. Polymer. Her smug smile, her conceited green eyes, her taunting facial expressions, her vivid white coat that swung around her, daring me to challenge her. Instinctively, I started to growl, a deep animalistic growl. (Which was weird, because as far as I knew, birds didn't growl, but… okay.) My heart pumped faster than it already was, my shoulder muscles tensed tighter, my lungs and new air sacs breathed deeper. My eyes narrowed of their own accord, and I could feel blood rushing to my face. My fists clenched into lethal weapons at my sides.

What was going on? Some part of me knew that it was an adrenaline rush, unlike anything I had felt before. Later, I would learn that the rest of the Flock, especially Max, felt this feeling hundreds of times in their lives. But in my past, boring, uneventful daily routine, I had never had a rush of energy like this. I liked it.

_Focus, then let loose. _Angel's words floated in my mind. I opened my eyes, centering the doomed form of Dr. Polymer in the center of my field of vision. Focused. Then I let loose.

What happened then? I honestly don't know. My memories skip ahead to... I'll hand off the story to my sister now.

Nudge POV

Max, Miranda, and Dr. Polymer were off in one corner of the big room, having some sort of scuffle. Angel was standing in the opposite corner, fingers pressed to her temples and eyes squeezed shut, her concentration on some sort of mental battle. Gazzy was struggling to keep the constant barrage of attackers at bay. Fang and Lex were fighting back hard, trying to take down as many as possible. Iggy was in a dark corner, a huge, dangerous-looking mass of wires and explosives forming in his hands. All of us were sporting injuries galore, and my bloodied hand had gone numb a few minutes ago.

Then, everything ended within a minute, literally. Angel jerked back to reality, tapped Gazzy's shoulder, and they speedily flew together over the heads of the soldiers to stand by me. Fang and Lex backed up to join us, and we huddled together. At the same time, Dr. Polymer… vanished. Right before our eyes. Like, one second she was there, and we blinked, and there was just empty space where she was standing. One of the strangest things I ever saw. Max pulled Miranda to her feet, and I could see that my sister's eyes were still blue, but calmer than they were when Dr. Polymer took control earlier in the fight, and sort of unfocused, like she wasn't completely with us at the moment.

The seven of us were crouched close together in a few seconds, while the soldiers halted in their fight looking around for their missing whitecoat leader.

Then, from across the room Iggy yelled at the top of his lungs, "_Ilokchuni_!" It was the secret language that the Flock used when we were still at the School. Only the six of us understood it: Get down. We hit the deck in half a second, pulling the confused Miranda and Lex down with us.

There was a flash of bright, white light. (A.N. Hah! That rhymes! Sorry… back to the story.) It was beautiful, a silent, deadly beam of brilliance. The temperature seemed to drop twenty degrees, and the ground beneath us shuddered slightly.

Then came the inevitable BOOOOOM! My eardrums were thrashing in my ears from the impact of the sudden noise. Dust clouds sprang up from the quickly broken tiled floor. Pieces of the ceiling rained down. The walls of the building began to topple. The freaked cries of the soldiers rose above the cacophony (A.N. Vocab word! Sorry, getting sidetracked again…).

When the chaos ended, we coughed, scrabbled, grunted, and moaned as we climbed our way out of the wreckage. Faintly, I could hear the distorted horns of fire trucks. Surprisingly (VERY surprisingly), all of us good guys made it out alive and not (seriously) harmed. Max didn't hesitate to toss us up to the skies and even carried Lex herself away from the site. I glanced down as we ascended high into the thick clouds of Seattle at the damage. I could hear Iggy and Gazzy high five in delight, and I had to agree. It was impressive. The dark building of ITEX, Seattle, was _completely_ destroyed.

And I didn't think their insurance policy would cover this.

A.N. Working on making an ending for this story that been in progress for over a year. Stay tuned!

Miranda: Wait, what just happened?

Me: Use your imagination.

Nudge: What happened to Dr. Polymer?

Me: Use your imagination!

Lex: Is Dr. Polymer even alive?

Me: COME ON, PEOPLE! JUST USE YOUR IMAGINATION! WHAT DO _YOU_ THINK HAPPENED?

Them: …

Angel: ICBN, do you need help?

Me: NO! WHY WOULD _I_ NEED HELP? I'M DOING _GREAT_! I'M _PERFECT_! I'M THE SANEST HUMAN ON THE _PLANET_!

Nudge: ICBN will be back later. Review before she goes completely wacko!


End file.
